Inside Sherry Singh’s Journey As The First Indian To Win The Mrs Universe Beauty Pageant

 

There are certain moments in life that people rehearse in their heads long before they actually happen. The phone call telling you that you’ve got the job. The moment someone says “yes” to a marriage proposal. The announcement of board exam results. Then there are moments you never rehearse because they feel too improbable. Standing under bright stage lights in Manila while someone reads out your name as “Mrs Universe 2025” probably falls into that category.

 

For Sherry Singh, the moment was revolutionary. When her name was announced, she became the first Indian woman ever to win the Mrs Universe title, a milestone that nudged India’s long and complicated relationship with pageantry into a new chapter. For a country that has celebrated Miss World and Miss Universe winners with near-cricket-match enthusiasm, the triumph of a married woman with a child felt refreshingly modern. But if you had asked Sherry a decade ago whether she imagined herself wearing a global pageant crown, she might have laughed and pointed you toward a basketball court. Because once upon a time, this beauty queen had a very different dream. She was a national-level basketball player, someone who believed that representing India would happen through sport rather than sequins.

 

Athletes have a particular way of imagining the future: it involves sweat, discipline, and a medal ceremony where your country’s flag goes up and your national anthem plays while you pretend not to cry. However, life (like an overly dramatic sports movie) occasionally throws in a plot twist. In Sherry’s case, it arrived in the form of a ligament tear. The injury ended her competitive basketball career and dismantled the dream she had built since childhood. For many people, that might have been the end of the story: a promising athlete forced to pivot into something more practical. Instead, it turned out to be the beginning of a completely different one.

This gorgeous 35-year-old's journey from Dadri in Uttar Pradesh, to an international stage in Manila is the sort of story that sounds cinematic when you describe it out loud. Small-town upbringing. Unexpected obstacles. A comeback that involves glamorous gowns rather than sports jerseys.

 

Academically, Sherry’s life followed a path that seemed far more predictable than pageantry. She studied at Indraprastha College for Women, University of Delhi, and later pursued a Master’s degree in Fashion Merchandising and Retailing from the Footwear Design and Development Institute (FDDI) in Noida. Like many women, she had to navigate the complicated mathematics of adulthood: family responsibilities, professional ambitions, and the question: Is it selfish to prioritise your own dreams? That question became even louder after marriage and motherhood.

Indian society is slowly evolving, but the idea of a married woman entering the world of pageantry still raises eyebrows in certain circles. Add a child to the equation, and suddenly every decision seems to invite commentary from people. Convincing family members. Managing expectations. Ignoring the occasional raised eyebrow from acquaintances who think glamour has an expiry date after marriage. None of this is particularly glamorous, but it is very real.

 

By the time Sherry entered Mrs India 2025, organised by UMB Pageants, she understood that winning a national title would only be the first step. International pageants operate on an entirely different level of scrutiny and preparation. Competitors arrive representing entire countries, and the expectations grow accordingly. If national pageants are intense, international ones—according to Sherry—are “ten times harder.” And yet, she thrived in that environment. The modern Mrs Universe, as she sees it, is not merely a symbol of glamour. It is a microphone. And Sherry has plans for what she wants to say.

 

Her advocacy focuses on women’s empowerment and mental health awareness. Growing up in a conservative environment made her acutely aware of the limitations many women still face. And her own experience with anxiety gave her a firsthand understanding of how quietly mental health struggles can shape a person’s life. These experiences, she says, make the crown feel less like an ornament and more like a responsibility.

Recently, Sherry stepped onto the ramp at Lakmé Fashion Week 2026, closing renowned fashion designer Pawan Sachdeva’s showcase. The appearance neatly combined her academic background in fashion with her new global profile. For someone who studied the industry in detail, walking the runway isn’t just about looking good in photographs. It’s about storytelling.

Pageantry crowns often come with a one-year spotlight: 12 months of appearances, advocacy, interviews, and glamorous photographs before the title passes to someone else. What happens after that year is what really defines a winner. Sherry already speaks about future plans: initiatives focused on empowering women in conservative communities, conversations around mental health, and efforts to remind women that ambition doesn’t need to disappear after marriage or motherhood.