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        Rhythmic music, glamour and showbiz flowed freely at the Miss South India contest on Monday in which film stars including Bharat, Narain and S J Surya participated to add glitz to the awards show.

        Organised by Maya Events India in association with Vision Pro Event Management on a bright Christmas evening, 16 contestants from Andhra Pradesh, Tamilnadu, Karnataka and Kerala slugged it out in the final to win the coveted title.

        Starting with a Bharatanatyam by students of Classical School of Fine Arts, the performance was judged by a panel comprising Sunile Kannan, managing director, Chennai Trade Centre, its directors Tharungopi and T P Gajendran, actor Jai Akash and former title winners Leena S Thanuja and Meena.

        Three rounds were held at the finals to judge the contestants. If cat walk was the first round, it was followed by an Act round and a final round of Q & A session. Eight girls were selected out of the 16 finalists and it was an arduous task for the judges to pick up the winner from among the selected eight. Neelima Rao of Andhra Pradesh was finally selected as the Miss South India - 2006 after the three rounds of intense competition. Earlier, she had also won the title of Miss South India for Beautiful Eyes.

        Sindhu Affan from Andhra Pradesh and Sahitya of Karnataka were selected as the first and second runners-up respectively. Sindhu had also won the title of Best Beauty on the occasion. Actors Bharath and Narain presented the trophies to the winners.

        The beauty pageant witnessed the crowning of four Miss States too — Anjali was selected as Miss Tamilnadu; Meghna as Miss Karnatak; Anuradha given the title of Miss Andhra; and Tania Sebastine won Miss Kerala honour. Catchy dance show by singer Ranina Reddy and her team regaled the audience in the course of the event.

        Rap music lovers in the city got a chance to listen to their favourite songs, thanks to some inspired show by Yogi P and team. A reenactment of a fight scene from the film Anniyan was a major highlight of the function.

        Presence of directors like Mysskin, Kalanjiyam and Saran, actor Karuna and actor-cum-dance master Lawrence lit up the entire proceedings with purpose and energy.