July 14: The Miss Bhutan Beauty contest which has been the subject of so much controversy finally took off today with 22 young women from across the kingdom walking the ramp for the first time.

77 young women from across the kingdom and different walks of life have registered for the contest. 22 women took part in the preliminary round of the contest on Saturday, July 12. The rest walked the ramp yesterday.

The contestants comprise of high school leavers, university graduates and in-service candidates. While many of them appeared nervous, they said they were prepared. Some even said they are confident and hope to walk away with the Miss Bhutan title. Some however said they are here to participate.

The contestants will be judged on their physical beauty including height, figure and skin, communication skills, confidence, personality, intelligence and social awareness.

The organizer of the beauty pageant Karma Tshering said the preliminary round is divided into two groups A and B.

He said from the two day preliminary round, 20 girls will be short listed who will be groomed for a month by a local modeling agent and experts from India.

The grand finale for the Miss Bhutan 2008 will be held in early September. The winner will represent Bhutan in international beauty pageants like the Miss Earth in Philippines and Miss Young International in Taiwan in October.