Personality For The Year
ANUDI GUNASEKARA
She carried not only a sash but the hopes of a proud nation – and on social media across the world of beauty pageants, she was an instant hit!
From Anuradhapura – the first and longest serving ancient capital of Sri Lanka – to the world stage, her journey reads like a modern-day tale of ambition. With poise and unshakable resolve, she has redefined what it means to be a beauty queen in Sri Lanka – by turning a crown into a platform and public visibility into tangible social impact, earning her the title LMD’s Personality For The Year.
From a young age, Anudi Gunasekara found confidence in styling, posing for photos and dressing up – a pastime that would evolve into runway ready grace and a powerful public presence.
Education was non-negotiable in the Gunasekara household, providing the foundation for what lay ahead: a path few choose but she embraced with conviction.
As a teenager, she was captivated by pageants – not by the allure of crowns but by their potential to amplify voices. And watching the crowning of an international beauty queen in 2017 sparked a belief that beauty could serve a greater purpose.
When Miss World Sri Lanka 2024 applications opened during her final year at university, she seized the opportunity. Balancing academics with pageant preparation, Gunasekara threw herself into refining her walk, sharpening her public speaking skills and defining her vision for what she wanted to represent.
In July that year, her dedication bore fruit: she was crowned Miss World Sri Lanka 2024, in addition to winning Most Popular and Best in Evening Wear accolades. For Gunasekara, the crown wasn’t to be the final destination – it was the beginning of a mission.
Even before her win, she envisioned a purpose driven role. This took form in the Saheli Foundation, which is dedicated to tackling period poverty, menstrual health stigma and inequity across Sri Lanka.
So what began as a grassroots endeavour to distribute sanitary products and hygiene kits soon expanded into an outreach programme.
Beyond relief work however, she lobbied for systemic change by advocating for lower taxes on menstrual products to improve affordability.
And as Gunasekara stepped onto the stage of Miss World 2025, she carried not only a sash but the hopes of a proud nation – and on social media across the world of beauty pageants, she was an instant hit!
She became the first Sri Lankan to reach the finals in three major segments – Talent, Multimedia and Head-to-Head – a milestone in national pageant history.
Though she did not gain a spot in the final Top 40, Anudi Gunasekara’s journey transcended competition; it became a story of representation and resilience – proof that a crown can be more than a symbol of beauty.
And in her quietly confident manner, she continues to challenge norms, showing young women that ambition and values can coexist, that glamour can live alongside grit – a spirit that rightfully earned her the Personality For The Year accolade.
