33-year-old fashion advisor, Qatrisha Zairyah, has cemented her spot in the final 15 of the Miss Universe Singapore (MUS) pageant.
She has made local history with this achievement, as she is the first transgender woman in Singapore to accomplish the feat.
Source: @qatrisha_zairyah on Instagram
Ms Qatrisha is no stranger to the world of pageants, having previously participated in beauty competitions for transgender women.
Most notably, she was crowned the runner-up at the Miss International Queen pageant in Pattaya, Thailand in 2023.
Ms Qatrisha and the other 14 finalists were introduced in a press event on Wednesday (28 Aug).
Ms Qatrisha underwent gender reassignment surgery in 2017.
She has also been married to a Singaporean husband for seven years.
Ms Qatrisha told The Straits Times (ST) that her husband knew her when she was 20 years old and serving in National Service.
“He was with me throughout my transformation journey from a boy to a woman,” she said.
Despite her achievements, Ms Qatrisha is also prepared for criticism, noting that there may be some who struggle to accept transgender people.
That said, she is still proud to represent the transgender community at the Miss Universe Singapore level.
“It’s about time I can represent my community on the MUS stage,” said Ms Qatrisha.
“MUS is a good opportunity for me to share about my life, my struggles, failures, fears, fighting discrimination, and how I’m achieving my dreams to become a successful trans woman.”
Ms Qatrisha also cited Spain’s Angela Ponce, who became the first transgender Miss Universe contestant in 2018, as her role model.
Miss Universe Singapore relaxed its stringent entry requirements for women in 2023.
Now, mothers, married, and divorced women can participate in the pageant.
The competition also removed an upper age limit, allowing all women above 18 to apply.
MUS’ national director, Elaine Daly, told ST that these changes resulted in the largest number of applicants the competition had seen in the last few years.
Amongst them was a 65-year-old woman who Ms Daly described as “very brave”.
“The Miss Universe pageant is very inclusive now, and Singapore has embraced the change,” she said.
Also read: Miss Universe Singapore’24 now accepting applicants who are married, divorced or have kids
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Featured image adapted from @qatrisha_zairyah on Instagram and @qatrisha_zairyah on Instagram.
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