Lara Dutta celebrates 20 years of Miss Universe title win, says she's 'eternally grateful' to the beauty pageant

Bollywood actress Lara Dutta on Wednesday recalled the special moment when she won the Miss Universe title two decades back on 12 May, 2000. Lara’s win made her the only Indian after Sushmita Sen to win the prestigious crown. She shared throwback pictures from her pageant days which show her participating in the swimsuit round, posing in an evening gown and being crowned Miss Universe 2020. The pics trace her journey from being a contestant to finally bagging the coveted title. “20 years to the day!! 12th May 2000, Nicosia, Cyprus. What a wonderful gift to receive from the universe! One I’m eternally grateful for,” Lara wrote. Check out her post here

In the year 2020, the Miss Universe pageant was held in Nicosia, the capital of Cyprus. In an interview with Bombay Times, Lara said that she can’t believe that it has been 20 years since she bagged the prestigious title. To her, it feels like she was crowned Miss Universe just “yesterday”. In the same year, Priyanka Chopra was crowned Miss World and Dia Mirza bagged the Miss Asia Pacific title. Lara Dutta made her debut in Bollywood with 2003 film Andaaz. She has acted in films such as Kaal, Khakee, Masti, No Entry, BhagamBhag, Partner, Don 2. She was last seen in the big screen in the 2018 film Welcome To New York. Lara got married in 2011 to former tennis player Mahesh Bhupathi and they are parents to a daughter named Saira who was born in 2012.