HOME OF BEAUTIES
Monday, November 10, 2008
This article is depicted from The Star
Kelly Tham puts her best foot forward
By SETO KIT YAN (Monday November 10, 2008, The Star)
Poise and confidence give Kelly Tham Kar Lai, the reigning Miss Astro Chinese International 2008, the edge in the beauty pageant. "Confidence is the instrument of beauty; it is also my instrument of choice.”
These words rang loud and clear as the winsome beauty declared that judges picked her because she possessed both beauty and brains.
Spoken like a true winner, Kelly Tham Kar Lai’s poise and confidence held her in good stead and won her the Miss Astro Chinese International 2008 title.
While the saying goes that beauty and brains go hand in hand, which is more important in showbusiness – beauty on the inside or outside?
Thus went a major debate during the 11th Miss Astro Chinese International Pageant (MACIP), which upped the ante this year by introducing more challenges including debates.
Standing at 159cm on the stage at Genting’s Arena of Stars, the beauty consultant was among one of the shortest contestants. Ever smiling and never unruffled, the newly-crowned beauty queen was unperturbed. To her, height was not a deciding factor in a beauty pageant.
“If it were a model search, then perhaps being tall would be an advantage. But for a beauty pageant, height is not a problem. What you need to show is your confidence, intelligence and grace,” offered Tham, herself a picture of grace.
Dancing like MJ
The 22-year-old proved she was not short on talent either. Tham bagged the Best Talent Award for her inspired impersonation of Michael Jackson.
“It was my dance teacher’s idea. Everyone is familiar with Michael Jackson, but it is definitely out of the ordinary to have a Chinese girl impersonate him. It was also quite a challenge for me as I usually do new jazz and hip hop.”
Although the active girl had only been taking dancing lessons for half a year, that did not stop her from trying something she had not done before.
“The pageant had so many activities that I only had about two sessions of Michael Jackson dance training with Suh Yee, my dance teacher. That comes up to about four hours of practice for me.”
Modest about her win, Tham said she did not expect to win the best talent award, and sang praises of another competitor, Kamen Lim, whose cheerleading routine included highly risky moves.
Although Tham was not the hot favourite to take the crown, she eventually impressed the judges, who applauded the girl on her professionalism and encouraged her to build her confidence during the course of the competition.
Initially, she was apprehensive about her ability to wade her way through the pageant. But the cheery lass kept her cool and held her own through all sorts of challenges.
“I enjoy watching beauty pageants, in particular the Asian ones. So I’ve always wanted to participate in a beauty pageant. Last year, I’d already thought of entering a beauty contest but didn’t manage to do anything about it. This year, I decided to act on it.”
Born in Seremban, Tham grew up in Kuala Lumpur. Her father is an electrician and her mother is a housewife.“My parents are so open-minded that they even went to Genting to show their support,” beamed the eldest of three siblings.
Her interest in beauty and aesthetics led her to take up makeup lessons leading to stints on music videos and with bridal houses before going on to become a beauty consultant.
Winning the Miss Astro Chinese International 2008 title, she took home prizes worth RM185,000, including a Peugeot sedan car worth RM120,000 courtesy of Astro and RM30,000 cash sponsored by Da Ma Cai.
As the titleholder, she will also represent Malaysia and compete in the Miss Chinese International Pageant 2009 to be held in Foshan, China, on Jan 17 next year.“The happiest time during our competition was when we were in Guilin filming the Go Green TV commercial. All 10 of us went and we had so much fun.”
The sweet girl has been invited to appear as a guest participant on game shows such as Ready to Fly and Super Trio and is now preparing for her trip to Foshan for the next stage of competition.
Now that she has had a taste of showbusiness filming TV commercials and shooting advertisements, Tham is game to take on any offers that may come her way.“The pressure came much earlier in the competition, during the challenges, because we never knew whether we’d get through the elimination rounds. By the time I reached the final, I was not nervous anymore. Standing on the stage during the final was excitement all the way.”
Back to basics
While gearing herself for the rigours of the competition, she realised that the best preparation was to go back to the basics. “We should take good care of our health. It is very important to drink more water so our skin is well hydrated as we have to wear a lot of makeup. We also need to get enough sleep so we have enough energy to take on challenges.”
With a view towards cultivating a culture of environmental responsibility, the theme for this year’s pageant was Go Green. The contestants went through five rounds of challenges. Ten contestants competed in the final round where challenges included question and answer sessions, debates, catwalk, and a talent showcase.
University student Lyn Lim Li Yee was named first runner-up while college student Lam Li Naa was the second runner-up. They each walked away with prizes worth RM40,000 and RM24,000, respectively.
Among the tallest at 171cm, Lim was also crowned Miss Body Beautiful.“This year’s theme being Go Green, we learnt a lot about conservation and being pro-active in saving the Earth,” said the statuesque 20-year-old Penangite, who is set to continue her studies in psychology at HELP Institute.
Twenty-year-old Lam was down with the flu and lost her voice during the final of the pageant, but she soldiered on bravely.“I’d entered the pageant to fulfil my mother’s dream, and I’m glad it’s come true. I’ve never performed on such a huge stage in front of so many people before,” said the pretty college student who is completing her diploma in Public Relations at Taylor’s College and aiming to do a Bachelors of Arts in Communication next.
Kelly Tham puts her best foot forward
By SETO KIT YAN (Monday November 10, 2008, The Star)
Poise and confidence give Kelly Tham Kar Lai, the reigning Miss Astro Chinese International 2008, the edge in the beauty pageant. "Confidence is the instrument of beauty; it is also my instrument of choice.”
These words rang loud and clear as the winsome beauty declared that judges picked her because she possessed both beauty and brains.
Spoken like a true winner, Kelly Tham Kar Lai’s poise and confidence held her in good stead and won her the Miss Astro Chinese International 2008 title.
While the saying goes that beauty and brains go hand in hand, which is more important in showbusiness – beauty on the inside or outside?
Thus went a major debate during the 11th Miss Astro Chinese International Pageant (MACIP), which upped the ante this year by introducing more challenges including debates.
Standing at 159cm on the stage at Genting’s Arena of Stars, the beauty consultant was among one of the shortest contestants. Ever smiling and never unruffled, the newly-crowned beauty queen was unperturbed. To her, height was not a deciding factor in a beauty pageant.
“If it were a model search, then perhaps being tall would be an advantage. But for a beauty pageant, height is not a problem. What you need to show is your confidence, intelligence and grace,” offered Tham, herself a picture of grace.
Dancing like MJ
The 22-year-old proved she was not short on talent either. Tham bagged the Best Talent Award for her inspired impersonation of Michael Jackson.
“It was my dance teacher’s idea. Everyone is familiar with Michael Jackson, but it is definitely out of the ordinary to have a Chinese girl impersonate him. It was also quite a challenge for me as I usually do new jazz and hip hop.”
Although the active girl had only been taking dancing lessons for half a year, that did not stop her from trying something she had not done before.
“The pageant had so many activities that I only had about two sessions of Michael Jackson dance training with Suh Yee, my dance teacher. That comes up to about four hours of practice for me.”
Modest about her win, Tham said she did not expect to win the best talent award, and sang praises of another competitor, Kamen Lim, whose cheerleading routine included highly risky moves.
Although Tham was not the hot favourite to take the crown, she eventually impressed the judges, who applauded the girl on her professionalism and encouraged her to build her confidence during the course of the competition.
Initially, she was apprehensive about her ability to wade her way through the pageant. But the cheery lass kept her cool and held her own through all sorts of challenges.
“I enjoy watching beauty pageants, in particular the Asian ones. So I’ve always wanted to participate in a beauty pageant. Last year, I’d already thought of entering a beauty contest but didn’t manage to do anything about it. This year, I decided to act on it.”
Born in Seremban, Tham grew up in Kuala Lumpur. Her father is an electrician and her mother is a housewife.“My parents are so open-minded that they even went to Genting to show their support,” beamed the eldest of three siblings.
Her interest in beauty and aesthetics led her to take up makeup lessons leading to stints on music videos and with bridal houses before going on to become a beauty consultant.
Winning the Miss Astro Chinese International 2008 title, she took home prizes worth RM185,000, including a Peugeot sedan car worth RM120,000 courtesy of Astro and RM30,000 cash sponsored by Da Ma Cai.
As the titleholder, she will also represent Malaysia and compete in the Miss Chinese International Pageant 2009 to be held in Foshan, China, on Jan 17 next year.“The happiest time during our competition was when we were in Guilin filming the Go Green TV commercial. All 10 of us went and we had so much fun.”
The sweet girl has been invited to appear as a guest participant on game shows such as Ready to Fly and Super Trio and is now preparing for her trip to Foshan for the next stage of competition.
Now that she has had a taste of showbusiness filming TV commercials and shooting advertisements, Tham is game to take on any offers that may come her way.“The pressure came much earlier in the competition, during the challenges, because we never knew whether we’d get through the elimination rounds. By the time I reached the final, I was not nervous anymore. Standing on the stage during the final was excitement all the way.”
Back to basics
While gearing herself for the rigours of the competition, she realised that the best preparation was to go back to the basics. “We should take good care of our health. It is very important to drink more water so our skin is well hydrated as we have to wear a lot of makeup. We also need to get enough sleep so we have enough energy to take on challenges.”
With a view towards cultivating a culture of environmental responsibility, the theme for this year’s pageant was Go Green. The contestants went through five rounds of challenges. Ten contestants competed in the final round where challenges included question and answer sessions, debates, catwalk, and a talent showcase.
University student Lyn Lim Li Yee was named first runner-up while college student Lam Li Naa was the second runner-up. They each walked away with prizes worth RM40,000 and RM24,000, respectively.
Among the tallest at 171cm, Lim was also crowned Miss Body Beautiful.“This year’s theme being Go Green, we learnt a lot about conservation and being pro-active in saving the Earth,” said the statuesque 20-year-old Penangite, who is set to continue her studies in psychology at HELP Institute.
Twenty-year-old Lam was down with the flu and lost her voice during the final of the pageant, but she soldiered on bravely.“I’d entered the pageant to fulfil my mother’s dream, and I’m glad it’s come true. I’ve never performed on such a huge stage in front of so many people before,” said the pretty college student who is completing her diploma in Public Relations at Taylor’s College and aiming to do a Bachelors of Arts in Communication next.
Labels: MISS ASTRO CHINESE INTERNATIONAL
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