America's fashion fraternity was shocked after UmaSofia Srivastava resigned from the Miss Teen USA title on Wednesday. UmaSofia Srivastava's resignation came just two days after Noelia Voigt resigned as Miss USA. UmaSofia Srivastava took to her Instagram handle and shared a detailed statement thanking her supporters and informed them that she will now be focusing on her studies and completing her High School. Many wondering why did UmaSofia Srivastava relinquished Miss Teen USA title or what was UmaSofia Srivastava's resignation reason? Well, UmaSofia Srivastava's detailed note indeed gave some hints. Now, the question arises who is UmaSofia Srivastava, Miss Teen USA? Below is all about UmaSofia Srivastava-
Who is UmaSofia Srivastava?
UmaSofia Srivastava, 17, won was crowned the winner of the Miss Teen USA pageant, which was held in Reno, Nev., in September 2023. UmaSofia represented New Jersey. Uma Sofia's bio on the Miss Teen USA website described her as "the first Mexican Indian Miss New Jersey Teen USA," adding that she "hopes to become a U.N. ambassador." Furthermore, UmaSofia owns a YouTube channel where she shares her experience.
During a question answer session on her YouTube channel, UmaSofia revealed that she started contesting in beauty pageants at the age of 16. "I have done three pegeants, a year and a half ago, it was my freshmen year of high school and I saw an ad for it on Instagram. I have always been a very outgoing kid, but I feel like at some point with the bullying that I was going through in high school and middle school, I thought it would change once I go to high school...so when I saw that photo on Instagram about Miss Teen New Jersey that those girls have so many happy group of friends. I never had such friends and so that kind of drew me in it. But, later I found out that pageantry is all about charity and helping others. That was a huge part of my life."
"One of the charities I still work with now is Lotus Pedal Foundation. I have seen my parents and friends working for the organization for so long. I have seen the impact it has brought impact on kids in India."
"Actually, my dad convinced me to apply for Miss Teen New Jersey because at first I just took it as fun. I was very academically focused."
Apart from being a model, UnnSofia is also an author. The former Miss Teen USA is the author of The White Jaguar. She is also an ambassador of NGOs like- uEmpower, Lotus Petal Foundation, and Smile Train.
UmaSofia Srivastava's resignation reason
UmaSofia Srivastava shared her official statement on Instagram with the caption, "Thank you to everyone who has supported me these past two years, it has truly been an honor to represent you all. While this was certainly not how I saw my reign coming to a close, I am excited to continue my advocacy for education and acceptance, start applying to colleges, and share some exciting new projects on That’s Fan Behavior with those of you who plan to stick around ... At the end of the day, I am so lucky to have had the privilege of this experience, but if this is just a chapter, I know that the story of my life will truly be incredible." Below is what Uma said in her statement-
"After months of grappling with this decision, I have made the choice to resign from the title of Miss Teen USA 2023. I am grateful for all the support from my family, my state directors, my sister queens, and the fans who have cheered me on since I won my state title. I will always look back on my time as Miss NJ Teen USA fondly, and the experience of representing my state as a first generation, Mexican-Indian American at the national level was fulfilling in itself. After careful consideration, I've decided to resign as I find that my personal values no longer fully align with the direction of the organization. However, I will continue my relentless advocacy for education and acceptance, with my multi-lingual children's book The White Jaguar and with the organizations that I have had the privilege to work with long before I started competing, namely The Lotus Petal Foundation and the Bridge of Books Foundation.
Ultimately, working with these incredible non-profits and seeing the first-hand impact that The White Jaguar has had on the kids and adults I've read it to is what has forged my legacy. This work has always been my TRUE purpose. I look forward to the rest of the year as I finish 11th grade as part of the National Honor Society and start the college application process, knowing that my academic career has been defined by my hard work, and my hard work alone. I'm also looking forward to pursuing a new writing project which will become available to subscribers of That's Fan Behavior. Most importantly, thank you to those who support me for who I am and have always been, not for who I've momentarily become."