Having a ball in namma Chennai, the Navy way!

CHENNAI: The third annual Navy Ball turned out to be just how it was expected. Vedha, one of the final 12 contestants, walked away with the crown and the title ‘Akshaya Navy Queen 2011’ on Saturday evening. The week-long contest concluded at a star-studded event at INS Adyar. The judges for the event, T Chitty Babu of Akshaya, actress Vimala Raman and cricketer Sadagoppan Ramesh also adjudged Divya R and Nivedha as the runners-up.The Indian Navy conducted the Navy Queen contest in the city for the third year running with much more pomp and fanfare. The event started with a Navy officer ‘rolling the ball’ and announcing the start of the Navy Ball 2011! The contest started with the preliminary round on December 5 in the Naval Officers’ Mess, where the final 12 contestants were selected from more than 200 entries. The contestants were then groomed by top notch industry experts for a week. The Navy Ball is one among the many other initiatives of the Indian Navy to bond with the civilian community. It is seen as an approachable and helping entity. Over the years, Navy Week has become a much awaited event in the Naval bases across the country, as it provides a platform for an elite form of interaction between the civilian population and the Indian Navy.Commodore Amar K Mahadevan, Naval officer-in charge (Tamil Nadu and Puducherry), said, “The Navy Ball and Akshaya Navy Queen contest are very prestigious events organised by the Indian Navy and we are very proud to bring this event to Chennai for the third time. As custodians of coastal security in the country, the Navy Ball is one among other initiatives to bond with the civilian community and be seen as an approachable and helping entity. We have received great response for this event this year and we hope to see more of this event in the coming years as well.”Commenting on this momentous occasion T Chitty Babu, Chairman & CEO, Akshaya Private Ltd said, “It is a very proud moment for us to be associated with the Indian Navy and do our bit to supporting a good cause to highlight the Indian Navy’s contribution to the country’s coastal security; this is our way of saluting the brave Indian Naval force and we will continue to support such initiatives in  future too.”