Plenty of women dream of being crowned a beauty queen. Here, the annual Miss Hong Kong Beauty Pageant is so popular that it is both an extravaganza event and one of the most-watched television shows, despite continual opposition from women's groups.
Feminists worldwide believe beauty pageants exploit female bodies, perpetuating the sexist idea of measuring a woman's worth on the basis of her appearance.
Back in 1975, Mary Pandora Cheung had her dream come true when she won the TVB-sponsored Miss Hong Kong contest. But since then she realised that it takes much more than mere statuesque looks to have a fulfilling life. She later opted for studying to prepare more options for herself.
In 1978, she took up management studies at the then Hong Kong Polytechnic, followed by fine art courses at the Chinese University and Hong Kong University.
Throughout the years she has been known as a talented painter and photographer; the moving pictures she took in impoverished parts of the world like China were used to raise money for various charity projects there.
Looking back on her versatile career over the past two decades, the woman with Eurasian looks takes pride in the fact that she carved a niche for herself through relentless efforts. Having founded her own marketing and public relations company in late 1995, she has ventured into another challenging area, and most importantly, become her own boss.