Ayu Maulida Putri, Indonesia’s representative in Miss Universe 2020, achieved quite an impressive feat in the world’s most popular pageant event. Though she failed to crack the top 10, Ayuma — as she’s affectionately known — served some looks worth swooning over (one of which saw her almost literally turn into a komodo dragon).
Ayuma was among the top 21 finalists out of 74 during Miss Universe final night, which was held at Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Florida on Sunday evening. She was wearing a mini two-piece dress by American designer Sherri Hill during the call-ups.
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“I love spicy food. I could eat like, 10 or even 15 or 20 chilis at one time. I bet that no one could beat me in eating spicy food,” Ayu said in her introduction video.
As for the swimsuit competition, Ayuma wore a red two-piece with a light pink robe by American designer Ema Savahl.
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The 23-year-old adorned a number of fabulous dresses throughout the course of the competition this year, including a Sebastian Gunawan dress she wore on coronation night. The sparkly white dress called Stardust was inspired by the “ethereal sparkling splinters of stars,” alongside the wish that Ayuma would shine like a bright star for Indonesia.
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The evening gown Ayuma wore for the preliminary competition was called The Divine Lungs of Indonesia by Indonesian couture designer Diana Putri. Through the dress, which has a classic low plunge neckline with high slits, Ayuma said she wanted to raise awareness about massive deforestation happening throughout Indonesian forests. The dress was bedecked with green swarovski crystals and handmade embroidery inspired by trees in the forests, which made Ayuma appear like a rainforest goddess.
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We simply cannot miss one of the most anticipated events in Miss Universe pageant, of course — the national costume show. Ayuma wore a Komodo dragon-inspired costume designed by Diana Putri, who collaborated with accessories designers Yuling Hoo and Silvy Prajogo of Le Ciel Design.
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Titled Komodo Dragon: An Indonesian Prehistoric Heritage, the dress paid homage to the giant lizard that calls the islands of Komodo, Rinca, Flores, and Gili Motang in East Nusa Tenggara (NTT) home.
The dress has a black and gold reversible sequins as the base, which resembled the komodo’s skin, while the chest piece and tail were created from leather using laser cutting and dyed to resemble the giant lizard. On stage, Ayuma demonstrated the Komodo moving while the choker and gloves lit up at the end.
Born in the East Java capital of Surabaya, Raden Roro Ayu Maulida Puteri represented the province in Puteri Indonesia 2020 and came out as the winner. The 23-year-old law graduate works as a model, having won competitions such as the Face of Indonesia and Face of Asia in 2019.
Miss Mexico Andrea Meza was crowned Miss Universe 2020, while Miss Brazil Julia Gama and Miss Peru Janick Maceta were named first and second runner-ups, respectively. On the other hand, Miss Myanmar Thuzar Wint Lwin — who held a “Pray for Myanmar” banner while walking down the runway — won Best National Costume, despite having lost her original costume on her way to Florida and fashioned a new one with the help from the Chin community in Florida.
Indonesia’s highest placement in Miss Universe so far was in 2019, when Frederika Alexis Cull managed to be named among the top 10 contestants.
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