15/12/2021
Miss Universe 2021: Nigeria wins in best costume category
Nigeria emerged the first African country to win the “Best in National Costume” at the 70th Miss Universe pageant which was held at the Universe Dome in Eilat, Israel, on Sunday.
It was no doubt a night of firsts, as Harnaaz Sandhu, became the first winner from India in more than two decades, to be crowned Miss Universe .
Maristela Okpala, Nigeria’s representative at the beauty pageant, donned a creative African heritage costume that has got people talking.
Ms Okpala strutted the runway in a costume, which she said was inspired by a female masquerade from the southeastern part of Nigeria called Mmanwa.
The beauty queen also revealed that the colourful outfit was made from African beads, stones, and crafts.
She said, “Before embarking on this journey, I told God I wanted my footprints to be left in the sand of time, to make history not only to Nigerians but one that touches the whole of Africa.”
"The thought, the excitement and the honour of representing My beloved country Nigeria and coming back with such a prestigious, incredible award can’t be over emphasized. Nigeria, Africa we made HISTORY.”
The Mmanwa Masquerad is a female masquerade costume designed for ceremonial and festive purposes.
It captures Nigeria’s rich cultural heritage while paying close attention to the strength of a Nigerian woman.
Her costume consisted of a three -feet tribal mask with a colourful ancient back cape with Mmanwa’s face boldly crested on it.
The tribal mask costume was made by a Filipino designer, Kennedy Jhon Gasper.
Explaining the reason behind her costume, Okpala wrote on Instagram,
https://www.instagram.com/p/CXToad6tww6/?utm_medium=copy_link
“Mmanwa is a female masquerade costume that’s designed for ceremonial and festive purposes to celebrate the rich Nigerian cultural heritage paying closer attention to the strength women possess. The 3ft tribal mask goes with the colorful ancient back cape with Mmanwa’s Face boldly crested on the mask and cape.
“It represents the beautiful Mmanwa who fought tirelessly to stop girl child mutilation and child slavery while the colorful patterns and embellishments portray the African dashiki which offers a visual appeal and forms meant to invoke the ancestral spirits.”
The 28 year-old model is a Nigerian cabin crew and a dental technician. She was born and raised in Enugu State.
She represented Anambra State at the 2021 Most Beautiful Girl in Nigeria pageant which was held at Eko Hotel, Victoria Island, Lagos, Nigeria, in September.
There, she competed against 36 other candidates.
She was a runner-up to Oluchi Madubuike.
The latter will represent Nigeria at the 2021 Miss World which takes place on Thursday at the José Miguel Agrelot Coliseum in San Juan, Puerto Rico.