Already a princess to her friends and family, local Canberra beauty Sadia Nabila is hoping to take the crown at the Miss Universe Australia (MUA) competition. Securing her spot as an ACT state finalist, Sadia is one step closer to making this dream a reality.
Already an accomplished model and actress having been in TV shows, short films and Bollywood movies, Sadia wanted to challenge herself. She isn’t the type of person who likes to just feel comfortable with what they are doing.
“I wanted to do something different, put myself out there, learn something new and be in a position to give it 100 percent. I want to represent myself and show the world who I am and what better way can there be than being a brown woman in Miss Universe Australia with all these white-skinned people,” Sadia says.
Although Sadia loves Bangladesh, her home country, when she was growing up, she often received negative comments about the colour of her skin.
“Everybody wants to be fair-skinned, everybody likes to be white-skinned so being brown or dusky-skinned is not something nice there [in Bangladesh].”
The neighbourhood she grew up in was quite conservative, Sadia also received continuous criticism about her desire to sing, dance, act and model. Luckily her parents always supported her dreams, taking her to other cities to pursue them. She says without their support, she wouldn’t be where she is today.
“Some girls can’t [access these opportunities] despite how passionate they are. I get so many messages from them asking how I started and how I moved forward and past all these things that are trying to stop you,” says Sadia.
Knowing that her success might empower a young girl out there keeps Nadia grounded, motivated, and feeling good about her career and MUA.
“The way I am looking at is there are so many brown women out there. Maybe sometimes they’re insecure and sometimes their family and society don’t let them represent themselves out there. I want to be there representing myself as a proud, brown-skinned Australian woman and hopefully, inspire at least one girl out there. It doesn’t matter what happens, where you were born, what family you are from, and which society you belong to, you can push yourself to follow your dream.”
When she isn’t looking beautiful in front of cameras or living the lives of others on screens, Sadia is trying to make a difference in the lives of people who need help most. For the past decade, Sadia has worked at her brother’s company Yellow Bridge as a NDIS support co-ordinator, helping people with disabilities achieve their goals with respect, compassion and empowerment.
“My sister-in-law got a spinal cord injury, she’s in a wheelchair. I looked after her for a while when I was a teenager and I think that is what got me into it,” she says.
Her time caring for her sister-in-law and her role with the NDIS opened Sadia’s eyes to how grateful able-bodied and people in good health should be.
“Sometimes we complain ‘I’m having a bad skin day, a bad hair day’ but there are people who are actually going through serious issues with their health.”
All the MUA finalists nominate a charity that they want to fundraise and raise awareness for. Sadia, who loves children, believes there is nothing better than putting a smile on a child’s face. Therefore, she has nominated ToyBox Australia and is hoping to raise $5,000 to help sick and disadvantaged children and support Camp Quality families in need.
“There are people out there who need my help and a charity like that, or any charity really, they’re trying to bring a change to someone else’s life. I feel more connected doing that work than anything else,” she says.
Of the twenty NSW/ACT state finalists, only an undisclosed number will head to the national round of the competition, Sadia says it is usually somewhere between seven and 12.
In a sponsorship showcase, the women will enter in rounds of black dress, cock-tail dress and bikini competitions. Sadia says during this process, they are also hoping to get a glimpse at the real person.
The successful national finalists travel overseas to promote sponsors and the causes they are passionate about, an experience that Sadia says would be unreal. Being crowned Miss Universe Australia opens the door to the global Miss Universe finals, a dream cherished by many young girls.
“I have always seen that [Miss Universe] on TV and this is one of those things that people dream about as a kid like ‘Okay, this is where I want to see myself’.”
Not counting her chickens before they hatch, Sadia says she is soaking up the experience as a whole. As a child, her mother told her every person and every situation has something to teach you, a sentiment that Sadia now carries herself.
“We all have our reason to take part in the pageant but at the end of the day, the way I look at it is, it’s just an experience and I’m going to learn something in the process.”
Sadia’s social media is often flooded with nasty messages and hate comments, sometimes from her own relatives for just following her dreams. Blocking these people, she moves on, understanding the importance of social media and the power it can have.
“People see and they know what you are doing and they want to help out. There are bad people but there are also good people.”
Among the negative comments and messages, some people message Sadia and say they appreciate the work she is doing and that makes it all worth it.
“That inspires me to do more and more. I will always try my best to do good work, doing whatever I can do from my end to bring about even a little change.”
Keep up to date with Sadia Nabila and her Miss Universe Australia journey; instagram.com/sadia.nabila
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