Beauty queen Roshanara Ebrahim makes comeback

In July 2016, the reigning Miss World Kenya, Roshanara Ebrahim, went from the high of holding the coveted crown to the low of having her private pictured leaked online by an ex-boyfriend and being dethroned. She sank into depression and battled suicidal thoughts.

Roshanara was embarrassingly stripped of the title she had won a month earlier, after her ex-lover Frank Zahlten leaked her nude photographs. The crown was bestowed upon the first runner up, Everlyn Njambi, who came fifth in that year’s global event held in the United States of America.

As Roshanara fought to restore her dignity and reputation through a court case that attracted much attention, many, believed her career was over.

Fast forward to last Saturday.

A loud cry of joy echoed in an auditorium at the Havilah Cornerstone Ranch in Ruaka, Nairobi when Roshanara was crowned the new Miss Universe Kenya 2021.

The University of Nairobi law graduate broke into tears immediately after her name was called out as the winner, beating 10 other contestants. It was a stunning comeback.

“I wasn’t expecting to win, but I wanted to win. It was the reason I broke down like I did, knowing that the past could come up again and that I could still lose. I put everything on the line for this dream.” Roshanara told the Sunday Nation.

During this interview, Roshanara battled mixed emotions as she narrated her ordeal five years ago.

She had just been crowned Miss World Kenya at the age of 22 and was looking forward to representing Kenya at the global competition in Washington DC, when she had a nasty break up with her boyfriend Zahlten.

In details that would later end up in court, the ex-boyfriend is said to have sent Roshanara’s nude photos to Miss World Kenya franchise director Terry Mungai on July 28, 2016. This triggered a chain of events that had a huge impact on Roshanara’s life.

“Effective immediately, Roshanara Ebrahim will not be representing the country both domestically and internationally as Miss World Kenya. A grave situation has come to our attention that is in breach of our code of conduct and contract with the reigning Miss World Kenya 2016 Roshanara,” read a statement from the local Miss World organisers.

Roshanara responded by suing Ms Mungai as well as her ex-lover Zahlten in October 2016.

“I felt it wasn’t fair how things unfolded. I wasn’t given a right of reply by the franchise. I also had to file injunctions to protect myself and my rights. I had to ensure I wasn’t being dragged through the mud by someone who was supposed to be protecting me,” Roshanara said.

On December 7, 2016 Justice Edward Muriithi ruled in favour of Roshanara. However, he declined to reinstate her as Miss World Kenya. The judge concurred with the franchise that indeed Roshanara had contravened a clause of the Mr and Ms World Kenya 2016 contestant management agreement on image rights. The judge also found that Roshanara posed for the nude photographs and in some cases took selfies and sent them to Zahlten.

But in the ruling, Justice Muriithi noted that Roshanara did not authorise the publication or sharing of the photographs. As such, Zahlten was found culpable and ordered to pay the model a sum of Sh1 million for violating her right to privacy. The judge also ordered the photos be expunged from the court records and barred all sued parties from publishing the images anywhere.

“The damages worked up to sh2.5 million including costs. However, I was never paid but the most important aspect of it is that I was able to protect my reputation and dignity from further damage,” Roshanara said.

The ordeal took a toll on her health and for months she felt so lost in a world she had hoped to make a difference in as a beauty queen.

“That was the most difficult time of my life, being betrayed by a person who meant the world to me, my confidant. As a young girl at that time, my dreams were taken away. I lost everything, lots of deals. The situation completely tore me, drove me to the edge, I fell into depression and became suicidal,” Roshanara said, adding that she also lost friends when the scandal broke.

“I thank my family for supporting me throughout the period. It was traumatising even for them because he came across as the nicest person… He left me in a very bad place. I thank God for getting me out of that and bringing me to where I am today with a second chance to achieve my goals before it is too late,” she said.

Her involvement in this year’s Miss Universe Kenya raised eyebrows after she was crowned the winner, with critics questioning her age. The age limit for this year’s contestants was 27.

“I applied for the entry into the auditions three days to my 28th birthday because the cut-off age was 27. The deadline for the application was October 12, and I turned 28 three days later,” Roshanara explained.

The decision to return to Kenyan from Canada, where she was living and working, wasn’t an easy one, she says, it was a leap of faith.

“I was in Canada and was doing pretty well when the auditions were announced. The choices I had were to remain in Canada and work on my permanent residency or come back to Kenya and take part in the pageant… I chose to come back home,” she said.

Now wearing the Miss Universe Kenya crown, Roshanara has ambitious plans to champion courses that will market Kenya globally.

“I want to inspire more women to take up space and become goodwill ambassadors and show empathy with the world in ways only women can. I want to be the voice and champion for women never to give up even when success is denied to them,” said the beauty queen.

This year’s Miss Universe global requirement is for the contestants to create local content marketing and showcasing what their countries of origin have to offer.

“It’s about showing Kenya’s tourism, lifestyle, local cuisines and developmental goals,” she explained.

Roshanara believes she has what it takes to beat the 66 contestants at the global competition in Israel.

“You can never be fully prepared for such events, but I believe my vast experience will get us the crown. I won Miss Universe Kenya this year because the franchise understands that they need someone with experience, one who has been on the global stage, someone who understands the international market, one who is eloquent and understands the international beauty requirements. Someone who can actually bring the crown home,” she said.

She will be leaving for Israel later this month with lots of hope and optimism as she represents Kenya at the 70th edition of Miss Universe 2021 to be held in the city of Eilat next month.

The lucrative global pageant will be hosted by American comedian and talk show host Steve Harvey.