what is your identity I was asked this
question in every interview after I won
the title of Miss World Japan in 2016
I had guessed there would be some kind
of reaction to my winning but I hadn’t
expected this question but this was in
the beginning of my story as I was
forced to answer this question I
remembered my journey to figure out who
I really was I didn’t enter a Miss World
Japan to prove that I was Japanese I
wanted to challenge myself and to be
seen as more than just a model also I
thought it’ll give me a bigger platform
not just for my career but to do some
good for the world which led me to
something bigger than I had imagined
becoming a face and a voice to mix
ethnicity I think at some point in our
lives we want to discover our roots our
unique identity and our own
individuality we are all individuals
whether we realize it or not we’re all a
mix but being a mix doesn’t mean we are
lesser than a whole we can be so much
more my name is Priyanka yoshikawa and I
am maja Fuu I was born to a Japanese
mother and the Indian father as a hatha
I knew I wasn’t fully Japanese or Indian
I was both and quite simply I was just
me even though I am of Japanese
nationality and I was born in Japan if I
tell people in Japan that I was Japanese
they wouldn’t believe me
and when I’m outside of Japan they would
often say wow your Japanese is really
good
or do you eat curry every day and when
I’m outside of Japan and I say I’m
Japanese they wouldn’t still see me as a
Japanese they’ll have a confused look on
their face and wait until I explain why
I don’t quite look Japanese and trust me
these interactions can get very tiring
when you get asked is everyday multiple
times sometimes makes me wish for a
separate nationality for mixed ethnicity
so yes I was an outsider in my own
native country and abroad but I was
comfortable being one being raised in
three different countries the US Japan
and India and parents who come from two
different countries I’ve had the
privilege to a develop a global mind and
indulge in other privileges such as
enjoy a sashimi as much as I relish
called the dose which cos travel from
Mount Fuji to Eastern Himalayas enjoy
diverse cultures and communities adapt
more easily to changes in my environment
and accept me being different but it
wasn’t so from the beginning being of
mixed race in Japanese society can
sometimes bring harsh experiences in
school my classmates treated me like I
was some kind of a germ in the hallway
if they accidentally touched me they
would wipe clean that part of their body
against a wall they would isolate me and
not include me in their conversations or
their social circles I tried to fit in
but it wasn’t easy and I lost my
confidence I don’t have a single memory
of being happy at school in Japan I was
always concerned what others were
thinking even though I acted like
everything was okay
I just waited for time to pass and
didn’t stand up for myself or fight for
my happiness and I regret this still to
this day because no matter what age you
are you deserve to be loved and to be
happy in the now in my heart I told
myself I might not be the most popular
girl in school but I’ll become the most
popular girl in Japan
I haven’t cleared that yet but if I
could tell thirteen old Priyanka that
she would become Miss world’s upon and
also be placed in the international
pageant I think she’ll be proud of me
going into high school where no one knew
me I felt I could start over and fit in
but I was trying so hard to be someone
who I wasn’t I finally realized I need
to embrace myself and celebrate my
unique identity rather than changing my
personality or allowing myself to be
bullied for it my mother taught me about
balance to listen to my heart and to
enjoy the best of both worlds to love
and respect both cultures the
interconnectedness and the independent
nasubi empathic not just towards people
around me but most importantly towards
myself I was an average student and I
had terrible grazing junior high and I
had no special skills but my mother
would tell me that I was smart and
talented and she would encourage me to
pursue my dreams and passion and what I
learned was at times you need to adapt
yourself and blend into the place you
are at but you don’t want to lose your
personality you need to celebrate your
cultural diversity being who you are and
look at the way you want others to see
you so I believed in this message
and through an onyx expiration of who I
was I discovered I wanted a bigger stage
from which to further my desires to make
the world a better place before winning
my miss world Japan title I had someone
very close to me telling me that I
wouldn’t be selected for a Miss Japan
because I was a hovel but that did not
stop me I was willing to push myself
work on my inner confidence and to be
anyone that I chose to be I was more
than ready to put all of my energy into
turning my dreams into reality with this
domination I was the first ha food to
win Miss World Japan and build my own
today in the incredible world that we
live there are many more hafiz like me I
realized that we’re bound by stereotypes
and prejudices which can limit us and
mask our true selves and as someone who
has a key influence in shaping
perceptions I feel that it is my
responsibility to encourage rising above
these forces to recognize each and one
of us for who we are human beings if
someone is telling you who you are not
don’t be afraid and hide yourself you
define yourself others do not no one
should tell us what our happiness is or
who we are your identity is not always
about where you come from or where you
are born I am a Japanese Indian but that
is not my identity identity is much more
than a country or blood identity is who
you are
in life we face many obstacles but only
the ones who will challenge themselves
to overcome will able to move for it
your journey might not be the one you
wanted but you will grow in the process
and gain many things that you have never
imagined you don’t have to be a miss
world to have your own place in this
world you are born free to be who you
[Applause]
[Music] [Applause]
question in every interview after I won
the title of Miss World Japan in 2016
I had guessed there would be some kind
of reaction to my winning but I hadn’t
expected this question but this was in
the beginning of my story as I was
forced to answer this question I
remembered my journey to figure out who
I really was I didn’t enter a Miss World
Japan to prove that I was Japanese I
wanted to challenge myself and to be
seen as more than just a model also I
thought it’ll give me a bigger platform
not just for my career but to do some
good for the world which led me to
something bigger than I had imagined
becoming a face and a voice to mix
ethnicity I think at some point in our
lives we want to discover our roots our
unique identity and our own
individuality we are all individuals
whether we realize it or not we’re all a
mix but being a mix doesn’t mean we are
lesser than a whole we can be so much
more my name is Priyanka yoshikawa and I
am maja Fuu I was born to a Japanese
mother and the Indian father as a hatha
I knew I wasn’t fully Japanese or Indian
I was both and quite simply I was just
me even though I am of Japanese
nationality and I was born in Japan if I
tell people in Japan that I was Japanese
they wouldn’t believe me
and when I’m outside of Japan they would
often say wow your Japanese is really
good
or do you eat curry every day and when
I’m outside of Japan and I say I’m
Japanese they wouldn’t still see me as a
Japanese they’ll have a confused look on
their face and wait until I explain why
I don’t quite look Japanese and trust me
these interactions can get very tiring
when you get asked is everyday multiple
times sometimes makes me wish for a
separate nationality for mixed ethnicity
so yes I was an outsider in my own
native country and abroad but I was
comfortable being one being raised in
three different countries the US Japan
and India and parents who come from two
different countries I’ve had the
privilege to a develop a global mind and
indulge in other privileges such as
enjoy a sashimi as much as I relish
called the dose which cos travel from
Mount Fuji to Eastern Himalayas enjoy
diverse cultures and communities adapt
more easily to changes in my environment
and accept me being different but it
wasn’t so from the beginning being of
mixed race in Japanese society can
sometimes bring harsh experiences in
school my classmates treated me like I
was some kind of a germ in the hallway
if they accidentally touched me they
would wipe clean that part of their body
against a wall they would isolate me and
not include me in their conversations or
their social circles I tried to fit in
but it wasn’t easy and I lost my
confidence I don’t have a single memory
of being happy at school in Japan I was
always concerned what others were
thinking even though I acted like
everything was okay
I just waited for time to pass and
didn’t stand up for myself or fight for
my happiness and I regret this still to
this day because no matter what age you
are you deserve to be loved and to be
happy in the now in my heart I told
myself I might not be the most popular
girl in school but I’ll become the most
popular girl in Japan
I haven’t cleared that yet but if I
could tell thirteen old Priyanka that
she would become Miss world’s upon and
also be placed in the international
pageant I think she’ll be proud of me
going into high school where no one knew
me I felt I could start over and fit in
but I was trying so hard to be someone
who I wasn’t I finally realized I need
to embrace myself and celebrate my
unique identity rather than changing my
personality or allowing myself to be
bullied for it my mother taught me about
balance to listen to my heart and to
enjoy the best of both worlds to love
and respect both cultures the
interconnectedness and the independent
nasubi empathic not just towards people
around me but most importantly towards
myself I was an average student and I
had terrible grazing junior high and I
had no special skills but my mother
would tell me that I was smart and
talented and she would encourage me to
pursue my dreams and passion and what I
learned was at times you need to adapt
yourself and blend into the place you
are at but you don’t want to lose your
personality you need to celebrate your
cultural diversity being who you are and
look at the way you want others to see
you so I believed in this message
and through an onyx expiration of who I
was I discovered I wanted a bigger stage
from which to further my desires to make
the world a better place before winning
my miss world Japan title I had someone
very close to me telling me that I
wouldn’t be selected for a Miss Japan
because I was a hovel but that did not
stop me I was willing to push myself
work on my inner confidence and to be
anyone that I chose to be I was more
than ready to put all of my energy into
turning my dreams into reality with this
domination I was the first ha food to
win Miss World Japan and build my own
today in the incredible world that we
live there are many more hafiz like me I
realized that we’re bound by stereotypes
and prejudices which can limit us and
mask our true selves and as someone who
has a key influence in shaping
perceptions I feel that it is my
responsibility to encourage rising above
these forces to recognize each and one
of us for who we are human beings if
someone is telling you who you are not
don’t be afraid and hide yourself you
define yourself others do not no one
should tell us what our happiness is or
who we are your identity is not always
about where you come from or where you
are born I am a Japanese Indian but that
is not my identity identity is much more
than a country or blood identity is who
you are
in life we face many obstacles but only
the ones who will challenge themselves
to overcome will able to move for it
your journey might not be the one you
wanted but you will grow in the process
and gain many things that you have never
imagined you don’t have to be a miss
world to have your own place in this
world you are born free to be who you
[Applause]
[Music] [Applause]
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