Beauty queens aren't born, they're manufactured. At least, they are in India where prospective Miss Indias spend 40 days in a Mumbai hotel learning to become jewels in the crown of the beauty competition world.

The method appears to work. The success rate is certainly impressive. In the last seven years Miss India contestants have won six of the world's top beauty titles.

The cameras followed the progress of the 26 finalists at beauty camp - like army boot camp only with high heels - where they were put through their paces while shielded from the outside world.

The resulting documentary was often not a pretty sight. These girls can swear and bitch with the best of them. If marks were awarded for catty remarks, Indian contestants would sweep the board.

The daily regime begins with a 5.30am morning call and ends with a 10pm curfew. In between, women like camp trainer Sabira Merchant mould them into shape.

"I have to have that inner magic starting this morning," she orders, like a sergeant major demanding more spit and polish on a recruitr's boots.

Rather than highlight aspects of Indian attractiveness, contestants are made to resemble the western idea of beauty with girls scanned for body fat and informed that every surplus ounce must go.

Camp psychologist Namit Kapoor tells them how to psych themselves up for the contest. This seems to involve saying, "I love myself" while looking in the mirror.

They learn how to deal with awkward questions, such as "what would you do if you became Miss World?". Saying you want to work with underprivileged children is not longer sufficient. Now you have to have opinions on single parenthood as well.

Some things don't change. Contestants still have to parade in swimwear, but not in public, just for the judges. Only a privileged few get to see them.

The Miss India final itself is one of the biggest events in that country's TV calendar. How unlike this country where Miss World and its ilk have been deemed the unacceptable face (and body) of male chauvinist piggery and hardly merit a mention.

The result brought more unhappiness. Backstage, the ones who didn't win were bitching again. "This is not fair, I deserved to be there. It's a matter of life and death," declared one rejected and dejected contestant.

Clearly, one thing Miss India beauty camp doesn't teach is how to be a good loser.