Singapore's Riona Krishnan Dighe Wins Miss Teen Universe Asia 2026 and Public Vote Award

Two Awards for Singapore in Phnom Penh

Singaporean Riona Krishnan Dighe, 18, won Miss Teen Universe Asia 2026 at the global finals in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, on October 25, becoming the first Singapore representative to receive the title. She also took home Miss Popular Choice, decided through online public voting, in a competition involving more than 30 delegates.

Riona advanced through the Top 20 and Top 14 before receiving the Asia crown. Her appearance combined a traditional Peranakan dance with a platform focused on children's education and access, drawing on charity work she began at 11.

The result brings wider attention to a teenager whose activities extend from international fashion shows to research on Bhutan's Gross National Happiness framework. She has raised more than S$57,000 for children's palliative care and rural education projects, completed her A-levels in Britain and begun studying business at University College London's Global Business School of Health.

Riona described the two awards as a personal milestone, explaining that the public vote mattered because supporters had taken time to help her.

This is honestly one of the most unforgettable moments of my life," said Riona. "Being named Miss Teen Universe Asia is a dream come true, and winning Miss Popular Choice makes it even more special because it means so much to know that people took the time to vote for me and cheer me on.

Her victory followed her selection as Miss Teen Universe Singapore 2026 in July. The Asia title was awarded at the global competition, while Miss Popular Choice recognised support through its online voting process.

A Crown With a Strong Sense of Home

Riona placed Singapore at the centre of her response to the result. In an Instagram post after the final, she described the experience as moving from representing a small country to holding a title associated with an entire continent.

Riona, the newly crowned Miss Teen Universe Asia, wrote:

I came to Cambodia as a girl from one of Asia's smallest nations and I leave with the honour of representing an entire continent. A continent of billions, countless cultures and extraordinary women.

She thanked her mother, manager, team members and fellow contestants, alongside those who supported her from Singapore. Her comments connected an individual achievement with the people who helped her prepare and encouraged her throughout the competition.

Singapore also shaped her talent performance. Riona chose a traditional Peranakan dance because she wanted an international audience to encounter a part of the country's heritage. Peranakan culture reflects generations of cultural exchange in the region and is expressed through traditions including food, dress and performance.

How She Prepared for the Final

Riona's preparation involved fitness, speech and media training, alongside three to four hours of catwalk classes each day. She also learned the Peranakan dance that she later performed in Cambodia.

Before the competition, Riona explained why she had chosen that performance:

I'm really excited to showcase Singapore's history because that's not something everyone globally knows about.

Her interest in pageantry began while watching Miss Universe on television with her mother and grandmother. Modelling provided her first experience of an international stage, before she moved into competitions that also gave her space to discuss education and charity work.

Her recent milestones trace that progression:

• June 2024: Her team says a partnership with Alice + Olivia raised £12,000 for Together for Short Lives.
• 2024: She held the Miss Teen London title.
• July 2026: She was crowned Miss Teen Universe Singapore 2026.
• October 13 to 31, 2026: Her Project Pink drink campaign was scheduled at Origin Tea House in Singapore.
• October 25, 2026: She won Miss Teen Universe Asia and Miss Popular Choice in Phnom Penh.

Education Work That Began at 11

Riona's competition platform grew out of work that began several years before her international modelling career. At 11, she led literacy and numeracy programmes for children in the early years of primary school in rural India. Those programmes focused on basic reading and mathematics, skills children need to progress through school.

She later became Head of Charity at Roderic House at Cheltenham Ladies' College. Her fundraising has supported both rural education and children's palliative care, which helps children with serious conditions and their families manage symptoms, comfort and daily needs.

Her team says the June 2024 collaboration with fashion label Alice + Olivia raised £12,000 for Together for Short Lives, a charity supporting children with conditions that shorten their lives. Across her charitable activities, she has raised more than S$57,000 for children's care and education projects.

The pound and Singapore dollar figures describe different parts of her fundraising record. The wider total has not been broken down by project, so the Alice + Olivia amount cannot simply be added to it as a separate contribution.

Why Bhutan's Happiness Measure Caught Her Interest

Riona's charity visits to Bhutan introduced her to Gross National Happiness, commonly shortened to GNH. The framework looks at people's wellbeing across several areas of life, rather than judging a country's progress through economic output alone.

Her interest became a research project lasting two years. With guidance from a mentor described as a Cornell University alumnus, she explored applying natural language processing to Bhutan's GNH framework. Her work was subsequently published in the International Journal of High School Research.

Natural language processing is a branch of artificial intelligence that helps computers work with human language. It can, for example, sort written answers into topics or identify patterns across large amounts of text. Riona became interested in whether such tools could help with the time and cost involved in collecting information about wellbeing.

Riona described the conversation that prompted her research:

When I was talking with an official in Bhutan, he told me that it was done using surveys. I thought that surveys take too much time; it's not very cost-effective. So I thought, why don't we use AI?

Taking Research Into Schools

Riona returned to Bhutan to share her research with schools and discuss potential applications with children. She also presented her findings to Bhutan's Gross National Happiness Centre, schools in the capital, Thimphu, and the King of Bhutan.

Those presentations linked her research with the place that inspired it. For students, the subject brought together two ideas that can seem far apart: how a country understands wellbeing and how computer tools might help organise information about people's lives.

Her speaking activities also included the Singapore Science Conference at Marina Bay Sands and an international conference on robotics, automation and artificial intelligence at Nanyang Technological University. These appearances added another public role alongside modelling and pageantry.

Riona has also spoken about keeping independent thought central to the use of AI. Asked how the technology could benefit her generation, she described it as a tool that could save time, while urging young people to continue thinking for themselves.

Riona put that view in simple terms:

Something we all have to do is to continue using our brains. I think relying too much on AI is dangerous. We should only use it to help us. But like everything, it should be used in moderation.

A Pink Drink With a Specific Donation

Riona's October charity activity brought her public profile into a different setting: a tea counter at Tang Plaza on Orchard Road. Through Project Pink, she worked with local brand Origin Tea House on Riri's Pink Crown, a drink supporting Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

The drink cost S$12.90, with 10% of sales going to Breast Cancer Foundation. At that price, the stated share works out to S$1.29 per drink. A final donation total from the campaign has not been given.

Its recipe combined rose, lychee and strawberry with milk foam, beluga sturgeon caviar and edible rose petals. The campaign described the topping as caviar from a beluga sturgeon aged 15 years. Riona developed the drink around her favourite colours and flavours.

The sale was scheduled from October 13 to 31, 2026, at Origin Tea House, B1-20 Tang Plaza, 310 Orchard Road, with daily hours of 11am to 9pm. A related Project Pink flower cart in the TANGS Level 1 atrium ran from October 13 to 15.

Where the Breast Cancer Funds Go

Breast Cancer Foundation, established in 1997, promotes early detection and provides practical and emotional support. Its services include support groups, Healing Through the Arts sessions and a free wig loan programme.

The charity also subsidises prostheses and bras for women on low incomes and operates Breast Cancer Support Centres at Khoo Teck Puat Hospital, Woodlands Health and Tan Tock Seng Hospital. It is a registered charity and an Institution of a Public Character, and relies on public donations to support its work.

Jacob Soo, chief executive of Breast Cancer Foundation, said the collaboration could encourage young women to think about early detection through an ordinary social occasion.

"Raising awareness about breast cancer doesn't always have to start with a big conversation. Sometimes, it begins with simple, everyday moments that get people curious and talking," he said.

Riona linked the campaign to women's health and empowerment. In the launch statement, she said:

My hope with this partnership with Origin Tea House is that every sip starts a conversation, spreads awareness, and reminds us that even the smallest acts of kindness can create something extraordinary.

Fashion, University and Life at 18

Riona has walked at New York, London, Milan and Paris Fashion Weeks. Her fashion work has included appearances in Harper's Bazaar, Vogue, Elle, Grazia and L'Officiel, as well as a Grazia Slovenia cover that she described as a memorable point in her career.

Her pageant record includes Miss Teen London 2024 and a runner-up finish at Miss Teen Universe UK. Profiles date the UK result to 2025, while the biography accompanying her Asia victory gives 2024.

Travel created practical demands during her final school year. Riona said she missed much of that year while attending Fashion Week and studied with tutors. She completed her A-levels at Cheltenham Ladies' College before moving into business studies at UCL's Global Business School of Health.

Boarding school began at 11. She recalled asking her parents to bring Singaporean snacks, including pineapple tarts and kueh lapis, while her grandmother travelled to Britain to cook familiar food. She said the experience taught her discipline, though she counted the days until she could return home.

Riona has also acknowledged the pressure of fitting friendship and ordinary teenage experiences around her commitments. Her friends travelled from Japan and Britain for her 18th birthday, and she has spoken about enjoying desserts, Taylor Swift and time with them. Behind the crown is a student managing travel, study and public responsibilities while beginning adult life.

Key Points

• Riona Krishnan Dighe, 18, became the first Singaporean to win Miss Teen Universe Asia, receiving the 2026 title in Phnom Penh on October 25.
• She also won Miss Popular Choice through online public voting at the competition involving more than 30 delegates.
• Her platform focused on children's education and access, and her talent performance featured a traditional Peranakan dance.
• Her charity work began at 11, and she has raised more than S$57,000 for children's palliative care and rural education.
• She spent two years researching natural language processing for Bhutan's Gross National Happiness framework and published her findings.
• Her S$12.90 Project Pink drink allocated 10% of sales, equivalent to S$1.29 per drink, to Breast Cancer Foundation.
• She studies business at University College London's Global Business School of Health and has walked at all four major international fashion weeks.