Who is Kaziah Liz Mejo? Kerala teenager crowned Miss Universe India 2026

Kerala's 19-year-old Kaziah Liz Mejo has been crowned Miss Universe India 2026 after winning the national pageant at a grand finale held at Zee Studios in Jaipur on Sunday.

Mejo emerged victorious among 52 finalists from across the country and was crowned by Miss Universe India 2025 Manika Vishwakarma. She will now represent India at the 75th Miss Universe pageant in Puerto Rico in November.

Kaziah Liz Mejo wins national title

Speaking after her victory, Mejo said the moment was the result of years of preparation.

"I feel so on top of the world. This is such an iconic moment and the moment that I've worked for for over three years now. And I'm so incredibly happy that I get to bring home this crown to my Kerala, to be able to show my hometown to the world, to be able to carry it to the Universe."

She also spoke about the personal challenge of competing on such a major stage at a young age.

"I believe that the most difficult struggle that you face will always be within, and that is to believe that you are worth more than what you think. So, being able to be on a stage as big as Miss Universe India at just 19 years old, I think that took a lot of audacity within, it took a lot of courage. And I was able to overcome that and now I stand here with the crown."

From Kerala to the national pageant

Mejo is a law student and model from Mavelikkara, Kerala. Her latest win adds to a pageant journey that began several years ago.

According to The Indian Express, she won Miss Teen Diva 2024 at the age of 17 before representing India at Miss Teen International 2025, where she finished as first runner-up. Earlier this year, she won Miss Universe Kerala 2026.

She is also the first Keralite to win the Miss Universe India title.

Born in 2007, Mejo spent her childhood in Abu Dhabi and studied at Emirates National School, St Joseph's School and Abu Dhabi Indian School.

Dance, music and acting

Alongside her law studies and modelling career, Mejo has trained in classical dance for 12 years. She also sings and plays the drums and violin, while having explored public speaking and acting.

She made her acting debut in the Malayalam film 'Shylock'.

Puerto Rico awaits

Vaishnavi Gannesh was named first runner-up and Miss International India 2026, while Anushri Satavlekar finished second runner-up. Tejaswini Shrivastava and Anubha Vashist Chaudhary were named third and fourth runners-up respectively.

The judging panel included Sushmita Sen, Urvashi Rautela, Rhea Singha, Pragya Kapoor and Celina Jaitly.

Looking ahead to the international stage, Mejo said, "My first plan is to bring home the crown of Miss Universe to India, and that will always be my biggest plan in life. And in everything I do, I want to be able to represent India, I want to be able to represent Kerala, and I want to be able to represent what it means to be India."