Leyla Lydia Tugutlu in person is woman of sincerity. She is not afraid to share her dreams, her passions and her story. She even shared the picture of her cat that she rescued from an animal shelter! Turkey has a lone Miss World crown courtesy of a Turkish beauty born in the Netherlands. And now, Leyla is a Turkish beauty who was born in Germany! Well, hope that comparison is enough for a second Miss World crown for Turkey but Leyla has qualities that say, "I am Miss World in the making". And while Turkey produces great beauties that are largely ignored in the global arena, Leyla is a beauty too beautiful to resist.
Please describe yourself, where you grew up and your hobbies.
I was born in Berlin, Germany on the 29th of October 1989. I and my sister are the only children in the family. Our mother is from Germany and our father is from Turkey. I had a quiet childhood and I am mostly interested in gymnastics, horse riding and swimming. I remembered visiting my grandparents often in Turkey until I was six years old. That was the time when my parents decided to move to Turkey and I started attending school in Istanbul.
I loved animals and our house in Istanbul had a garden where I could have cats and dogs, birds, fishes, guinea pigs etc. This is the time that I also started to take piano lessons due to my interest in singing, which led me to take conservatoire exams. Being successful at the exams, I took 2 years of solfeggio and 3 years of violin lessons. At the same time I was attending primary school, where, along with normal lessons, I took part in many school plays with great excitement. But it was hard to attend two schools at the same time. As the time passed by, I developed interest in modeling and fashion. At the age of 12, I was among the finalists of "Children Models" contest in Turkey. Later, in 2005, I was again in the finals of "Best Model Turkey" which is the national contest for Best Model of the World contest. I was quite young among the other contestants and received the "Best Promising" model title. Since the contest took place as a fashion show, we stayed at a hotel where we rehearsed for the show for one week. At that period I realized how much I enjoyed the fashion show, yet again how hard and busy it was to be a model. As a result of my title, I was sent to China to another contest where I was chosen as "Princess". My age again hindered me from winning title.
University Acceptance Exams have a very complicated system in Turkey so I had to quit all my activities and worked hard for months. As a result, I was accepted to the university that was working so hard for. I love to write poems and stories, to watch my surroundings and describe and write about people I saw on the street everyday. So I chose to study literature and history. But I realized that only studying was not enough for me and I again started working as a part time model while I was also going to a school for speaking, news casting and design. As I grew up I saw that there is much more to do and I worked for some charities in Turkey. I love being with people and I love listening. I'm someone with good observation who loves to analyze characters and know people very well.
About my hobbies, I like playing my instrument (violin), reading, watching movies, swimming, drawing, writing, taking photos. And I love listening to music. It's my passion.
What is your fashion style?
I love pure and simple things. That's why I don't wear so much make-up. I prefer sweet and matt colors rather than colorful things. I'm very interested in fashion but I don't always wear the latest trends. I have my own style. I try to look chic with simple things. And I use very few accessories.
Can you share to us your beauty secret?
Take care of your body, eat healthy foods, and take rest. I think being positive makes someone beautiful. You have to love yourself and feel comfortable in your body. People with a smile on their face are beautiful to me. If you are positive everybody will recognize you.
How were you selected as Miss Turkey World? Describe the selection process.
I sent pictures and filled a form to apply to the Miss Turkey organization. After the first elimination based on the submitted photos, 150 girls were invited for the next step. Each of us had a conversation with the jury. First they set us down to 50 and then to 20 finalists. We had a camp for 2 weeks at a beautiful hotel in Istanbul. We prepared dances and choreographies for our final show. The final took place at TIM - Show Centre on 27th March 2008 and the fantastic show was broadcasted live on TV.
What qualities do you think that will enable you to win the Miss World 2008 crown?
You only attend this kind of pageant once in your life and this is very important for me and I'm honored. I think I have the qualities what is important to be a "Beauty with purpose". I'm ambitious in my work but not in a desperate way. I am hardworking and I want my work to be clean and in the best way that I can. To be Miss World is a mission. You have to have responsibility and be open to new ideas. I like to travel, experience new cultures and meet new people. But it's a competition and beyond winning I will get to know a lot of nice and intelligent girls and I'm sure the whole experience will add a lot to me. Of course I want to represent myself and my country in the best possible way and make them to be proud of my success. It's also nice to be a Miss World because you can be an inspiration, a role model for younger ones to go after their dreams. Women like Audrey Hepburn and Angelina Jolie are role models for me. They've worked in charities and for good causes and both are also successful in the film industry. I believe we came to life for a reason. My family always supported me and advised me to help and share. There is so much I want to do and Miss World is a chance for me to fulfill my ambitions. I want to show that beauty exists with other qualities.
I made applications to charities and chose something that deals with a lot of problems. I realized that people forgot their source for food, water and air. Now I'm working with an association for environment. Our association organizes tours to different regions to protect the animals and plants which are about to vanish. It's our aim to evoke people's consciousness about the environment and planet. We are also suffering from water shortage and forest fires this year.
What is the most interesting or unique experience that has happened to you?
If you mean a bad memory or something that turned my life upside down I've not experienced any and I hope it will never happen to anyone. But I have an interesting happening that made me very happy. We have a world famous designer who lives in Austria and does big fashion shows abroad. He uses Turkish motifs and different materials. I always watched him on TV with admiration. When I was in the camp of my pageant we had an interview with a magazine and one of the questions was 'Which of the designers' shows would you want to walk at?' I answered At�l Kutoglu. A few weeks later he called and asked if I would take part in his fashion show. It was a dream came true.
What would you say to some people who think that beauty pageants are outdated?
I respect everyone's thought. But I think prejudice is not good. Every year women have the opportunity to show their beauties with their intelligence and talents. It raises their self-confidence and makes their dream come true. Miss World gives a message to the world. It gives a gift more important than winning: friendship, memories and experiences that we will always have in our hearts. Also I think that Miss World brings different cultures and colors together so it symbolizes peace. It shows that the world can live in harmony and with the respect for all cultures and beliefs.
How would you describe Turkey to the rest of Miss World 2008 delegates?
Turkey is located at the meeting point of 3 continents and has a rich culture with different colors. It has a long history and nestled a lot of civilizations. That's why you can see lots of historical places and monuments. There are different regions with different accents and food. Turkish cuisine is very delicious as Turkish people love food and mix it with love when they cook. You can also find other cuisines and tastes. The people are hospitable and make you feel at home wherever you stay. I live in the metropolis Istanbul where the two bridges across Bosporus are connecting the Europe to Asia. It has a colorful, exciting nightlife and it's always alive. Numerous local and international concerts, shows, exhibitions and festivals are organized every year. Istanbul is officially nominated as one of the European Capitals of Culture 2010.
What is your motto in life?
'Never do the things to others that you would not want to be done to yourself'.
Lastly, a message to the web visitors of Missosology.Org�.
I want to thank everyone who supports us and the pageant, and I also want to thank Missosology.org team for their interest and the interview. I'm both physically and mentally ready for the contest. I will give my best. Believe in yourself. If you believe, you will come closer to your dream.
Hepinize tesekkur ediyorum. Elimden geleni yapacağıma s�z veriyorum.
Our heartful thanks to Leyla Lydia Tugutlu for sparing some time to answer our questions!
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