Malaysia's crowning glory: Ammetta Malhotra

By Sharen Kaur
Pix via Ammetta's FB
 

   Beauty with brawn, Fit and gutsy, One strong woman redefining female beauty for the new millenniun, Ammetta on a mission to redefine the beautiful body, and Ammetta Malhotra changes the narrative to Muscular is beautiful...these are just some of the recent headlines in the print and digital media describing Malaysia's new champ, Ammetta Kaur Malhotra.

  The 170cm rehabilitation specialist's story is both motivational and inspiring.

  After finishing her Sixth Form studies at BBGS (Bukit Bintang Girls School) KL, Ammetta graduated with a second upper honours degree from University Malaya in the 1990s.

  She decided to pursue her dreams in fitness and thanks to her very supportive family, Target Fitness Studio was born.

Achieving her fitness goals

  The humble her then met Brendan James Bergin, got married in September 2005, had three kids, and took a step further to gain her Master’s degree in rehabilitation science from California University of Pennsylvania.

Graduating with a Master’s degree in rehabilitation science from California University of Pennsylvania in December 2014

   Ammetta spent the first few years of motherhood raising her kids. When they were more independent (now aged between 7 and 11) she decided it was time to let her hair down. She took part in fitness contest and won a few awards.

  Her first competition was the World Fitness Federation Universe event. She didn’t get a podium finish but was not deterred.

A winner at the Women's Fitness Final.

  For her, it wasn't about winning but gaining experience which was invaluable.

  "I learnt that in order to win, you need to have good muscle tone but yet still look very feminine. So I continued to train to be that person. When i was more prepared I decided to take part in the WFF Kahma Classic in Melbourne, for those over 30 years old. I won gold and was overwhelmed. When I'm on top of my game, there's no stopping me. In the end, all my hard work paid off and there's no stopping me. I continued training to prepare myself for the next big event," she said.

Early last year, Ammetta took part in the WFF Kahma Classic in Melbourne, for those over 30 years old. She won gold.

   Ammetta's next target was to enter a beauty contest and in less than two years, she won numerous international awards, including Mrs Classic Universe 2019 second runner-up held at Sofia, Bulgaria in January.

  Her first competition was Mrs Elite Malaysia Universe Pageant 2018 where she finished as second runner-up.

Nope...that not Mariah Carey!

   For the Mrs Malaysia Globe Pageant 2018, she was crowned Mrs Malaysia Globe Classic and even won the Mrs Fitness Globe 2018 subsidiary title.

For the Mrs Malaysia Globe Pageant 2018, Ammetta Malhotra was crowned Mrs Malaysia Globe Classic

  Her next and most recent competition was the Mrs Classic Universe 2019 pageant held at Sofia. Besides winning second runner-up, she also won two subsidiary awards – Best National Costume Award for her Borneo tribal costume with native rhinoceros hornbill feathers, and Mrs Sports Award.

Ammetta entered the Mrs Classic Universe 2019 pageant held at Sofia, Bulgaria and she won second runner-up

  The costume that she wore for the grand final was a saree-inspired outfit. For the Best National Costume Award, she wore a Borneo tribal costume with native rhinoceros hornbill feathers which left the audience in awe.

At the Mrs Classic Universe 2019 pageant, Ammetta wore a Borneo tribal outfit with native rhinoceros hornbill feathers

  "Beauty pageants are such platforms which enable one to enhance her abilities. It builds their self-confidence and also sharpens their skills and it has worked very well for me. My children are inspired by me and I am so proud of that," said Ammetta.

  The natural-born athlete has garnered 92.7k followers on Instagram and numbers are coming in.
 
  So how does she juggle between family, kids, running her studio, being a brand ambassador, and taking part in beauty pageants?

Family time

 

Keeping up with the Malhotra's

  "It's never easy being a mom trying to juggle a full-time job with a family life but you just got to do it. The key is to focus on a plan, get organised, and find the right balance between profession and parenthood. Thank god I have a supportive husband and children who are very understanding," she said.

  So what will Ammetta be doing next?

  With the crown and title comes responsibilities and offers.

Ammetta Malhotra

  "The organisers have approached me and offered the position of national director for one of their top events, Supermodel of the Universe. This is the first time a Malaysian had been appointed to that role and I am very excited about it.

  "At the moment, there is a lot of Miss and Mrs beauty pageants in Malaysia, but there isn’t really an international Supermodel Pageant. We want to find the next top super model of Malaysia, both male and female. The Malaysian winner gets to compete with all the supermodels of the world,” said Ammetta.