A contest to pick a new “Miss Sake India” was held in New Delhi on Thursday to promote the drink in the world’s most populous country, with Aakansha, 29, named as this year’s winner.
Five finalists performed dance and talked about their own experiences with sake at the event at a Japan Foundation facility.
Aakansha, who works in the marketing industry, said she was very excited to be chosen for the one-year role of promoting sake.
“I think more people should explore” sake, she said.
The 2025 competition, hosted by Hirohama India, which has hotel and restaurant operations in the South Asian nation, followed a sake-tasting event the night before at the official residence of the Japanese ambassador to India, during which local restaurant operators and other participants sampled combinations of sake and Indian dishes including fish curry and bean curry.
Although many people don’t drink in India for religious reasons, the country’s population of over 1.4 billon offers an attractive potential market for sake producers.
Some Japanese breweries are exploring the possibility of producing sake in India to expand local sales channels.
