Lara Dutta joins hunt for Miss Universe India 2016

Former beauty queen Lara Dutta will be seen in an all-new avatar as the mentor and face of "Yamaha Fascino Miss Diva - Miss Universe India 2016".

Lara, along with actress Kangana Ranaut, flagged off its fourth edition here on Saturday night.

To be telecast on Colors Infinity, the seven-part reality tele-series is aimed at finding a winner who will represent the country at the coveted Miss Universe pageant.

Collaborating in the journey of bringing forth Indian beauty and talent at the global beauty platform, Lara said: “I am extremely excited to be back with the new season of 'Yamaha Fascino Miss Diva 2016', which has a whole new look this year."

"It's exciting to be part of this journey in finding the perfect representative who is the Indian face of beauty, who possesses elegance, confidence, poise and intelligence.," she said.

"This journey has always been close to my heart and I hope this season is the one that brings us that exceptional girl who will bring the Miss Universe crown back to India,” Lara said.

India hasn't won a Miss Universe crown since 2000, when Lara bagged the title.

For this edition, Lara, along with a set of panelists and judges, will chronicle the journey of the finalists from across the country and judge them on various tasks.

The themes will be designed and judged on various parameters ranging from ramp walk, photoshoot, perfect body, communications skills and more.

The nationwide auditions begin from June 17 in cities like Lucknow, Indore, Ahmedabad, Kolkata, Chandigarh, Pune, Hyderabad, Delhi and Bengaluru, and will culminate into the final leg of auditions at Mumbai.

Roy Kurian, Vice President of, Sales and Marketing of the pageant's title sponsor Yamaha Motor India Sales Pvt Ltd, said: “'Yamaha Fascino Miss Diva - Miss Universe India 2016' is the right platform for modern Indian women to get recognised for their passions and aspirations."