uMhlanga beauty brings home the crown
Last year, her goal was to collect 100 stationery packs for learners, but the ambitious go-getter managed to assist 500 learners with school supplies for the 2024 acadamic year, something she says is one of her proudest achievements.

THE 2023 Zee TV Miss India South Africa was held at the Durban Jewish Centre recently where uMhlanga’s TeKayha Sukuram scooped the title, bringing the crown to Durban.
The pageant has been running for 32 years and is the oldest cultural pageant in South Africa.
The actor, dancer and BCom accounting student told Northglen News that she had contemplated entering the competition in 2019 but felt she needed more experience at the time.
“While having lunch with my aunts, they encouraged me to enter the pageant, especially since I want to get into Indian cinema. I spoke to friends and gathered all the information I needed to enter,” she said.
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The entry process was fairly simple. All Sukuram had to do was send in pictures of herself, together with an entry form. She was then called for an interview and chosen as a finalist.
“There were 21 finalists, including myself. All are such phenomenal younger women whom I learnt a lot from. New friendships were created,” said the 21-year-old.
Charity work is nothing new to Sukuram who fully embraced the opportunity to tackle collaborating with non-profit organisations for the pageant.
“I have my own charity project, which I steer, but for the pageant, I teamed up with Durban SPCA and assisted with their charity drives,” she said.
Her project is called E-Quali-Cation, and its aim is to bring quality education to those in need.
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“On the night of the finals, I really saw sisterhood at its best. As finalists, we had very little time between segments to ready ourselves, and we all helped each other in whatever way we could, even with compliments and pep talks,” she said.
Sukuram then made the Top 10, something that came as a shock as her name was the last to be called. She also scooped the title of Best Talent for her impressive dhol-playing (drum-playing) skills.
“I didn’t know what to expect, and when the judges announced my name as the winner, I was stunned. Surprisingly, I was so calm throughout the pageant that it made me worry,” she added, laughing. She said that the entire experience of taking part in the Zee TV Miss India South Africa was truly magical.
“This is the platform I’ve been waiting for as it now gives me the stepping stone to possibly enter Indian cinema. I learnt so much about myself from this pageant, and I also learnt from my fellow contestants,” added Sukuram.
She plans on continuing with her charity work while studying and empowering herself by adding to her skill set of acting and dancing.
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