Playing pretend princess as a child is now something of a reality for sophomore Riti Patel who has become a modern-day beauty queen on a statewide stage.

Riti was officially crowned as Miss Texas Runner-Up in July, allowing her to advance to the National American Miss pageant in Orlando, Fl.

“I was pretty confident in my abilities to be in the top 15 out of the hundred girls that were competing at the pageant,” Riti said. “I never thought I would place any higher than that, but sure enough, I made top 15 and then top five and then was crowned as Miss Texas Runner-Up.”

Riti has long been fascinated by the modeling world and would often be found dressing up and doing her makeup in her free time.

“When I was three or four, I wanted to be a Victoria’s Secret model more than anything,” she said. “My mom would put the runway show on the TV, and I would watch them thinking, that was exactly what I wanted to do. I think that’s what brought me into the whole world of modeling.”

However, when Riti initially received the invite to compete in the state pageant, she was unsure whether she would participate.

“I got a letter in the mail that said I was accepted as a contestant for the National American Miss State pageant,” Riti said. “I wasn’t initially going to do it, but my friends and family were convinced that it would be a good idea and that I would regret it if I didn’t do it.”

One of the biggest cheerleaders in encouraging Riti to enter is childhood friend, senior Rohan Tolia, who felt Riti has the character traits needed to do well.

“Some people automatically associate pageants with beauty, but [Riti] is so much more than just that,” Tolia said. “She’s a really smart person, and she has a strong voice in regards to what she wants to do and how she wants to impact the world, so that made me see that she was a good fit for this opportunity.”

Once Riti made her decision to compete in the pageant, she had to prepare for the three parts of the competition: formal wear, personal introduction, and the interview.

Riti’s mom, Panna Patel, helped her prepare for the visual aspects of the competition.

“We had to go shopping to buy the right clothes,” Panna said. “We made sure she had the right shoes, accessories, and dresses. In doing all this, though, the shopping and driving her around, I got to spend quality time with her, which I really enjoyed.”

As for the public speaking portions of the pageant, Riti spent countless hours practicing to calm her nerves.

“Some challenges I faced were stage fright, fear of public speaking, and nerves in general,” Riti said. “I had to learn to calm myself down, or else if you’re doing an interview or personal introduction, your voice might be shaky. You have to learn how to put whatever you’re feeling to the side and do what you have to do to not let it resonate with the audience.”

Through observing Riti’s qualities throughout her adolescence, Panna had full faith in her daughter’s abilities.

“As a child, Riti was always open to trying new things and not afraid of the unknown,” Panna said. “That same quality is needed to overcome some of the stage fear that she will have to face during her events, and that might have influenced this decision.”

To her surprise, Riti’s favorite part about the pageant was the new friends she met.

“I really thought that it’s going to be all like tutus and tiaras, and if you ask a girl to zip up your dress, she’ll rip it up,” Riti said. “It really isn’t like that. Everyone is super lively, kind, and outgoing, and it’s just a very nice environment. When I was done with the pageant, I really wanted to go back. I loved the environment, I loved the people I met, and all the friends I made.”

Through this experience, Riti learned not to doubt herself and her abilities and will carry forward this advice when she competes in nationals.

“Everybody thinks they messed up really badly, and everybody judges themselves so much, but on the outside, it doesn’t look like that,” Riti said. “If you mess up, it’s not as big of a deal, and it probably went better than what you thought. You should be confident in yourself, and that will resonate with the audience.”