Glamour can be an eye-opener

As we approach Ila Jari's apartment, a babbble of children's voices reverberates down the corridor.

"I think our house is the noisiest in the building," laughs Jari, who is from Goa, India.

Her house is full of kids of different ages thronging her place after school.

Jari helps them with their homework. Homework done, it's party time. She sings and dances and the children enthusiastically join in.

Jari, who came to Dubai in September last year, finds it extremely personally fulfilling to be with children.

Which is a huge transformation considering as a young girl, she never imagined she would enjoy being around them.

The change happened due to a totally unexpected event.

In 2004, Ila, who was at the time living in Goa, decided to participate in the Gladrags Mrs India 2005 contest.

Says she, "I always dreamt of participating in a beauty contest, but I didn't get a chance during my teenage years. In 1998, I got married and soon after, had a daughter. But my dream continued to shine brightly.

"In 2004, when the organisers for Gladrags advertised in the media, my husband and friends encouraged me to give it a shot. So, I filled in the forms" and the next thing she knew was that she was selected. "This came as a complete shock and before I knew it, I was packing my bags and flying off to Mauritius." There, she joined the other 24 contestants.

"Being selected for such a prestigious contest is a feat in itself," says Ila, "as it provides a great platform for personality development and personal grooming.

"The month I spent in Mauritius preparing for the contest was like going back to school. I had to undergo intensive training. Experts from various fields – ranging from grooming to personality development – conducted seminars. The run-up to the contest changed me entirely. I became more confident of myself and sure of what I was doing.

"The organiser of the contest, Maureen Wadia, was deeply involved in the contestants' grooming process. She made sure that each got as much attention as the other."

As the contest got under way, Ila made it to the top six finalists.

As she went through the paces, Ila kept feeling that something was missing. Soon she realised what
it was – her family, especially her 4-year-old daughter.

This jolted her into a new awareness of where her true priorities lay.

After the finals of Gladrags Mrs India (which were held in Mumbai) in November 2004, she immediately returned to her home in Goa.

"All I wanted at that time was to be back with my daughter." She did not therefore take up many of the modelling offers that came her way, as accepting them would've meant "staying on in Mumbai a little longer.

"For me the contest was not a springboard to stardom, but a learning process. I feel it changed me in many ways and made me stronger. I learnt a lot of things in that short span of time. I enjoyed my tryst with glamour for a month and still cherish the memories."

Back in Goa, she set up her own model training academy thereafter for aspiring models. But when her husband landed a job in Dubai, she gave it all up and came with him.

"I live for the moment and feel there's always something better in store (in life)," she says.

Today Ila leads a regular life, far away from the glitz and glamour of beauty pageants and model grooming.

Her current job has nothing to do with that slice of her past but she is not complaining. In fact, she is enjoying it more than anything else.

(Gladrags Mrs India is an annual beauty contest for married women in India. The winner represents the country at the international pageant, Mrs World.)