Lekna Hegde was crowned Miss Universe Karnataka 2026 on the glitzy evening of April 3, 2026, at Gayatri Vihar, Palace ground, Bangalore Karnataka. She was crowned by the outgoing titleholder, Vamshi Uday and the reigning Miss Universe India titleholder, Manika Vishwakarma. Alongside winning that glittering crown, she also earned the rights to represent her state, Karnataka, at the most prestigious beauty pageant in the country – Miss Universe India, to take place later this year.
Lekana Mallikarjuna Hegde, professionally known as Lekana Hegde, is a model, athlete, and marketing professional from Karnataka. Born in Bengaluru and originally from Mangaluru, she is currently based in Bengaluru. She holds a Master of Science in Marketing from Anglia Ruskin University, Cambridge, UK, where she was awarded a sports scholarship. Standing at 180 cm (5 feet 11 inches), she is fluent in English, Tulu, Kannada, and Hindi and has skills in sports and sketching. As a basketball player, she has represented Karnataka at national level competitions 17 times and has been part of multiple Indian national camps, including the Senior Indian Camp Top 30 (2021), Senior 3x3 Camp Top 12 (2021), and Junior U18 Camp Top 30 (2018). Her sports career also includes participation in the 3BL Professional Basketball League (2022), National Games (2023), and podium finishes such as a bronze medal at the Senior Nationals South Zone in Pondicherry and a silver medal at Khelo India U21 (2019). In the fashion and pageantry industry, she has been a National Finalist at Miss Universe India 2025, Runner-Up at Miss Universe Karnataka 2025, and a state finalist for other national beauty pageants. She was also the winner of Mega Model Hunt 2019 (All India), organized by Prasad Bidappa Model Management and served as Brand Ambassador and winner for Tanishq Rivaah in 2023.
Additionally, she has walked at Dubai International Fashion Week and other major fashion events and received the “Star Award” for Best Model at Dubai Fashion Week.
In the coming weeks, she will be seen walking down the stage at the most anticipated beauty pageant of the country – Miss Universe India. The competition is owned by one of the biggest beauty pageant organizations in the world – the Glamanand Entertainment Pvt Ltd (popularly known as the Glamanand Group).
The organization was established by its founder and president, Nikhil Anand in the year 2013 and gradually it became one of the leading beauty pageant producers in the world. At the conclusion of this year’s Miss Universe India competition, the reigning titleholder, Manika Vishwakarma from Rajasthan will crown her successor, who would later go onto represent India at the prestigious Miss Universe 2026 competition, scheduled to happen by end of this year in Puerto Rico.
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