Tuesday, September 17, 2013


Miss America.

Nina Davuluri (Telugu: నీనా దావులూరి, born April 20, 1989)[1] is an American beauty pageant titleholder who was named Miss New York 2013, subsequently winning Miss America 2014. She is the first Indian American to be chosen as Miss America.[2]
Davuluri was born in Syracuse, New York, but moved to Oklahoma at age four and later to St. Joseph[3] Michigan, where she would go on to attend college at the University of Michigan. Along with her family, she moved back to the Syracuse suburb of Fayetteville in the mid-2000s, where her father is a gynecologist affiliated with St. Joseph's Hospital.[4]
Davuluri was born to Telugu parents. Her mother Sheila Ranjani and father Davuluri Koteshwara Choudhary both hailed originally from Vijayawada, Andhra Pradesh, India.[5] In 1981, they left for Missouri (United States), where her father worked as a gynecologist. Her maternal aunt and uncle in India are also doctors and run a nursing home, while her father’s siblings are doctors in the United States. Following the family trend, she wishes to become a cardiologist.[6] To honor her Indian roots, she became a trained Kuchipudi and Bharatanatyam danseuse during her yearly visits to India. Davuluri has learned to play piano as well and she regularly watches Telugu films (Tollywood) to stay connected with India.[6][7]

Miss America - Telugu

Photo: Miss America.

Nina Davuluri (Telugu: నీనా దావులూరి, born April 20, 1989)[1] is an American beauty pageant titleholder who was named Miss New York 2013, subsequently winning Miss America 2014. She is the first Indian American to be chosen as Miss America.[2]
Davuluri was born in Syracuse, New York, but moved to Oklahoma at age four and later to St. Joseph[3] Michigan, where she would go on to attend college at the University of Michigan. Along with her family, she moved back to the Syracuse suburb of Fayetteville in the mid-2000s, where her father is a gynecologist affiliated with St. Joseph's Hospital.[4]
Davuluri was born to Telugu parents. Her mother Sheila Ranjani and father Davuluri Koteshwara Choudhary both hailed originally from Vijayawada, Andhra Pradesh, India.[5] In 1981, they left for Missouri (United States), where her father worked as a gynecologist. Her maternal aunt and uncle in India are also doctors and run a nursing home, while her father’s siblings are doctors in the United States. Following the family trend, she wishes to become a cardiologist.[6] To honor her Indian roots, she became a trained Kuchipudi and Bharatanatyam danseuse during her yearly visits to India. Davuluri has learned to play piano as well and she regularly watches Telugu films (Tollywood) to stay connected with India.[6][7]