By Nigel Pfunde
Just over hour remains before the runway lights up at Hippodrome, Harare.
Malaika translates to “angel” in Swahili, and our very own angel, Malaika Mushandu, is about to strut her stuff against 16 other contestants. She returns after a decade and a half away from the catwalk, yet never once left the world of art.
Was Malaika born to set and break records? The evidence says yes.
She made history as the youngest woman ever crowned Miss Zimbabwe which then called Miss World Zim back in 2011. She was only 17, a year shy of the legal age of consent and likely to have not known any man!
She was the youngest winner on record.
Fast forward to today, and the angel now vies for the coveted crown at 33, likely the oldest contestant in the mix. Should she capture the crown tonight, she would shatter her own record, becoming the oldest winner in Zimbabwean pageant history.
Not so fast, though. Miss Universe Zimbabwe 2026 has scrapped age limits, and this writer has not seen every contestant’s bio. There could be someone older.
Yet in terms of record-making, a win tonight would make Malaika the first Zimbabwean model to claim two national beauty pageant crowns. True, Brita Masalethulini was Miss Zimbabwe and Miss Malaika, but Miss Malaika was a continental pageant, not a homegrown national title.
The Miss Malaika name was later tainted by its founder, Benin-born Ernest Adjovi. I was in my last year of high school and vividly recall that Brita had to fight to finally receive her prize, a Mercedes Kompressor. Adjovi was later ordered by Namibian courts to repay N$23.5 million he received from the Namibia Tourism Board for Kora Awards that never happened.
But I digress.
Back to Malaika. As she walks the ramp tonight, she will be oozing confidence, having been there and done that. “Swim or sink,” she posted on her socials.
Her break from modelling is like a dormant volcano whose lava remains hot. She stayed within the arts and creative sector, taking up filmmaking and storytelling with real success. Her film “Mirage” earned six nominations across international festivals, including Toronto and Nollywood events.
That achievement has steeled her mindset to enter any competition and fight like a soldier going to war.
Whether she wins or not tonight, Malaika the storyteller is telling a story of a strong woman who inspires others that there is no barrier to ambition.
One crown. One Queen. Hippodrome is expected to be lit tonight. The light winter showers that fell over Harare late afternoon felt like a cleansing and a sign that little trouble won’t stop big things from popping.
Top notch Host and the Hostess Zozo Tunzini and Tich Mataz to lit up Hippodrome
The lineup of entertainers is off the chain, and glamour is the last name. Former Miss Universe 2019, Zozibini Tunzi hosts alongside the Midas Touch himself, Tichafa Matambanadzo, better known as Tich “Zvazviri” Mataz.
Oh, what a night it will be!
