Mumbai, June 2 : Femina’s May-June 2026 Cover Story shines the spotlight on the remarkable women who emerged as the winners of 61st Femina Miss India 2026: Sadhvi Sail, Femina Miss India World 2026; Rajnandini Pawar, Femina Miss India – 1st Runner Up; and Dr Sree Advaita, Femina Miss India 2026 – 2nd Runner Up. The trio opens up about their journeys, ambitions, personal challenges, and the purpose they hope to champion through their platforms.
Fresh from her crowning moment, Femina Miss India World 2026 Sadhvi Sail reflects on the surreal experience of becoming Femina Miss India World 2026 and the dreams that led her there. “After being crowned, I remember standing on the stage and looking at Nikita Porwal (Femina Miss India World 2024) beside me, thinking,
‘Oh my God, I had a vision board back in 2025 with her crowning moment on it.’ I kept reminding myself that this had actually happened to me, that I now got to stand in that same spot, and that, maybe someday, I could become part of someone else’s vision board too. In that moment, I felt like so many of my dreams had come true all at once.”
“Globally, I feel India is still often viewed in a very limited way,” Sadhvi adds. “As a movie buff, I’ve noticed that, in many foreign films, when Indians are cast or included in storylines, there’s often a stereotypical accent used, and colourism is prevalent as well. But India is made up of people with different skin tones, accents, beginnings, and backgrounds. I want to showcase that our people are much more than the boxes we are often put into and belong to a country so rich in diversity and history.”
Speaking of the next phase of her life, Sadhvi says:
“I think I would call this phase ‘re-learning’ because that’s something I’ve realised throughout my journey so far. I’m constantly unlearning and re-learning things. It almost feels like a cocoon period for me, where I’m slowly transforming without knowing exactly what the outcome will look like. Like a butterfly emerging, I don’t know what colour, shape or size of me will come out of it, but I’ll embrace whatever change or growth comes my way.”
Femina Miss India 2026 – 1st Runner Up Rajnandini Pawar shares how her diverse experiences in sports, academics, and the performing arts shaped her path to pageantry. “I’d been extremely inclined towards co-curricular activities in my school. I have always given an equal amount of importance to education as well as creative expression. I’ve had an opportunity to represent my state, my city at divisional level and state levels in squash, swimming, and athletics. And I’ve dedicated every phase of my life accordingly. Dance was also a huge part of my life growing up, I had my first-ever dance performance at the age of three.”
Reflecting on her Femina Miss India journey, Rajnandini says:
“It started with talent hunts and pageants while I was in college, and then finally Femina Miss India Maharashtra happened. Maharashtra is one of the toughest states to crack because the highest number of participants is from here as it is the industry hub. I am grateful to have won, after which Femina Miss India happened. Through the course of the pageant, I did not leave any stone unturned. I didn’t perform in a way where I wanted to win Femina Miss India... I was performing in a way where I wanted to win Miss World from an international point of view.”
Speaking about leadership and youth empowerment, Rajnandini adds:
“Throughout my life, any opportunity of leadership I have had has taught me to take on responsibility and accountability. I think a true leader doesn’t just lead in the sense of walking alone forward but takes their entire team together with them and grows together with the people around them. A good leader is also somebody who is able to take calculated risks, and I know that, when we think of risks, I think of Gen Z, because we’re unafraid to do what we want. We will make sure that we give it a try so that we have no regrets in our lives.”
Femina Miss India World 2026 – 2nd Runner Up Dr Sree Advaita opens up about overcoming a life-altering spinal injury and how resilience helped redefine her purpose. “When my injury was diagnosed, I was thriving in every aspect of life. My dancing, modelling, and academics were all going well. Doctors still do not have a practical explanation for the injury. That phase was physically and mentally exhausting. For close to three years, I had completely given up, but, one day, something inside me shifted. I realised I could not let that become my entire life story. Pageantry and the dream of creating something meaningful kept me going. The injury also taught me that, no matter how hard you work, whatever is destined for you will reach you at the right time.”
Balancing medicine, modelling, and dance, she reflects on the lessons each field has imparted. “Medicine taught me about responsibility and humanity that extend beyond me. In modelling and dance, I perform for myself, but, in medicine, someone else’s life is involved. At the same time, the arts taught me discipline and expression. Every experience in my life has contributed to who I am today.”
Looking beyond the crown, Dr Sree Advaita hopes her journey inspires others to pursue meaningful change. “At the end of the day, I just want to create a space where not only I thrive, but others feel inspired too. I started working towards change long before pageantry through my work in reproductive and women’s health. This platform has amplified my voice. More than fame, I want people to remember me for the kindness I showed and the impact I created. Even if one girl can someday tell me that something I did helped her move forward in life, that would mean the world to me.”
Through their individual stories of ambition, resilience, leadership, and purpose, Sadhvi Sail, Rajnandini Pawar, and Dr Sree Advaita embody a new generation of women redefining success on their own terms. Femina’s May 2026 Cover Story offers readers an intimate look at the women behind the crowns and the journeys that continue beyond the pageant stage.