During the competition, Anntonia had done an impeccable job as the representative of Thailand. She appeared effortlessly elegant onstage with a captivating presence, graceful walk and an impressive ability to answer questions thoughtfully. In the round of five finalists, she was asked if she had to speak to a room full of students about online bullying, what would she say? Her reply received wild cheers from the crowd.
“I would say to not listen to what people have to say, because in the end everyone is entitled to their own opinion but it is up to us on how we react to it. Use our voice to stand up for what is right and be the change that we want to see in the world by leading by example. Don’t listen to the hate because it doesn’t shape us, but what shapes us is how we get back up and how we move forward from that,” she said.
In the round of three finalists, the question was if she could live in another woman's shoes for one year, whom would she choose and why? Anntonia chose Malala Yousafzai, the world's youngest Nobel Prize laureate, because Malala advocated for the education of women and young girls in Pakistan after it was banned by the Taliban when they overran her home of Swat Valley.
Anntonia was born in Bangkok to a Danish father and a Thai mother from Nakhon Ratchasima, where she was a representative at the Miss Thailand Universe competition. Due to her father’s career, when she was young she lived in many countries such as India, Vietnam, Mexico and Spain. This exposure to different cultures broadened her mind and allowed her to embrace differences and appreciate diversity.
Despite being an optimistic person, Anntonia struggled to deal with negative comments when she was a contestant of The Face Thailand Season 1 at the age of 17. She was criticised for being too chubby for a model. Those hateful comments made her feel insecure for years.
Even as a contestant in Miss Supranational Thailand 2019, Anntonia felt stressed and nervous about the swimsuit photoshoot. She cried at home and told her father that she would never be chosen because the other girls were more beautiful than her. However, her father wisely pointed out that she should not assume the outcome without trying. With his support, she persevered and was crowned Miss Supranational Thailand.
Additionally, her mother influenced her to participate in charity work. Helping underprivileged people made her realise that she should appreciate the things she has. Five years ago, Anntonia started a project, Little Steps, to make her donations official. She then decided to participate in pageants to raise awareness for the project, hoping that this would help her to reach more people.
Through Little Steps, Anntonia helped orphans, people with low incomes and female prison inmates. She recently launched a video on her Instagram account, @porxild, to advocate for women’s economic empowerment since she believes that financially independent women can strengthen society.
