Trishna Ray, a student of KIIT University in Bhubaneshwar, has claimed the title of Miss Teen Universe 2024. The event, which was held in Kimberley, South Africa, on November 1-9, was one of high prestige, and top contestants came from Peru, South Africa, Brazil, Kenya, Portugal, and the Netherlands. Ray emerged as the jury's favorite, good enough to shoot past stiff competition to win the crowning glory.

Ray, currently studying fashion technology at KIIT, is the daughter of Colonel Dilip Kumar Ray and Rajashree Ray. Earlier, Ray was not able to compete in Colombia and Dominican Republic due to visa errors. Despite all these incidents, perseverance for Ray proved good enough for the crown in South Africa.

Founder, of KIIT University, Dr. Achyuta Samanta congratulated Ray on her outstanding achievement and said, her "determination and resilience” were very inspiring, and especially during this tough time, she proved it by winning. 

Former Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik also took to social media to congratulate Trishna Ray for her victory and said, “Congratulate #Odisha’s Trishna Ray on being crowned Miss Teen Universe 2024 in Kimberley, South Africa. May she scale new heights in her career and make our state proud. Wish her the best for the future."

Be it economy or sports, social media users across the nation were her cheering up. Fashion designer Shaine Soni commented, “It was your time.” Another user posted, "India came, India shined, India conquered. Trishna Ray, thank you for bringing this honor to the nation." A third user highlighted India's triumph and added "We now have the golden and the pink crowns both the first time for India. What a year. What an ND. What girls."

Ray's alma mater, KIIT University, paid a tribute on its website praising her as a student who put in hard work and overcame various challenges to attain their goal. "Odisha and India are immensely proud," the institute said.

With Ray's win, she not only brought honor to Odisha and India but also gave inspiration to hundreds of thousands of youths who aimed to achieve what she attained with perseverance.