Miss Asia GB finalist ‘proud to fly the flag for Slough’ after pageant success

A Miss Asia Great Britain finalist from Slough has said she is ‘proud to fly the flag’ for her town after scooping a runner-up spot at this year’s competition.

Chelsea Jalota, 24, was one of just 16 women shortlisted from the more than 100 entrants to make it through to the pageant’s grand finals on October 5.  

Ms Jalota, from Britwell, told the Express that she wanted to show people ‘there are achievers’ in Slough and encourage other young people from there to seize their opportunities. 

“Slough is not a nice place, apparently,” she said. “But I wanted to show that my town isn't as bad as people say it is - and there are achievers here as well.

“I hope I can inspire other people, youngsters, to do the same.”

Ms Jalota, who was born in Berlin and has family roots in India, is studying biomedical science at Oxford Brookes University and hopes to become a neuroscientist.

She has lived in Slough since 2010.

“It is a really nice and diverse place,” she said.

“I guess it can be nicer. But, overall, I do like Slough and I’m just proud to fly the flag for it and hopefully inspire some other people to go on and achieve as well.

“You just have to have the courage to go for it - if you're getting the opportunity, just apply and just go for it.”

The 16 shortlisted competition finalists were pitted against each other at a glittering grand finals hosted by the Forest of Arden Hotel and Country Club near Birmingham.

Hundreds of people attended the finals, Ms Jalota said, with judging based on a talent show, as well a question and answer session. 

As part of her entry, Ms Jalota performed a self-choreographed dance to the Bollywood song Des Rangila, which translates to English as Colourful India. She said the performance was a tribute to her south Asian heritage.

Judging also took into account an entrant's advocacy for a particular cause.

“The main thing about this pageant was, it wasn't about looks, it was mainly about if you had a certain passion and for me it was about education,” Ms Jalota said.

“I'm quite passionate about children's education; especially those children who are struggling at home, who might have difficult personal circumstances.

“I was talking to my family about it [the pageant] and they said you should enter, so I did - I didn’t really think I would get in.”

A statement from the competition organisers said: “The pageant celebrates women of Asian heritage living in the UK, focusing on empowerment, cultural pride, and personal growth."

Pageant founder Rose Marok added: “Mrs / Miss / Ms Asia GB isn’t just about crowns or titles - it’s about celebrating real women and their journeys.

“Each finalist represents strength, diversity, and the power of owning your story with pride.”

Ms Jalota said she wants to help disadvantaged young people by creating a new programme called Ed.resume.

The programme would offer free stationery and learning support to young people, she said.