Miss Rotorua 2021: Channeling True Beauty from Within

“The thing that matters most in the world is true beauty from inside your heart. No matter where we are from, what we look like, what our job is, what language we speak, we all deserve to be loved and respected.” – such inspiring words from the new face of a modern-day Rotorua woman herself – Kogi So

By Queenie Lee Tanjay

Photos: Supplied.

ROTORUA – Kogi was born and raised in Hong Kong and has been thriving in New Zealand as a migrant since 2015. With her momentous win she hopes to be a louder representation of the migrant community in the country.

Kogi made history being heralded as the first migrant given the coveted title Miss Rotorua (2021). “I felt excited, but didn’t expect much. I just did my best to inspire as many migrants as I could during the journey,” she revealed.

Her win also speaks of how multi-hyphenate women are starting to break stereotypes in the pageantry scene. Considering herself a late bloomer, Miss Rotorua is Kogi’s first pageant at the age of 37. “My daughters were my motivation to join the pageant, as I want to be their role model and to empower women to inspire migrants and the next generation.”

Although competitions are evidently flocked to by young, tall and lean women such as in Miss Hong Kong, Kogi was undeterred in making a statement by her participation. “It is not about the outside beauty, but the true beauty of woman, for which there is no barrier and no limits for age, size of the body, nationality or marital status,” she relayed.

Kogi also believes that in these unprecedented times pageants play an integral role in hyping up the spirit of the community. “I believe that pageants are still relevant in this pandemic as it’s all about empowerment no matter what’s happening. The mission and our spirit are still there,” she said.

“It is about bringing the multicultural together in society and especially encouraging and empowering migrants to participate in the community – sharing our love and respect.”

Following her crowning Kogi looks forward to collaborating with multicultural communities to share her advocacies on anti-racism, anti-bullying and empowerment. She is currently involved with the Brave Charitable Trust in raising awareness against child sex abuse.