Former Prime Minister’s Great-Grandchild Aims for Top University Student Title
Hikaru Ohira (21) won the "Miss High School Girl Contest" in high school and also manages a company.
In 2020, following her victory in the “High School Girl Miss Contest,” Hikaru Ohira, a third-year student in the Faculty of Literature at Aoyama Gakuin University, won the “Miss Aoyama” title in 2023 at the age of 21. If she also wins the Grand Prix at the “MISS OF MISS CAMPUS QUEEN” on March 12th, where winners from university beauty pageants across the country gather, she will achieve an unprecedented triple crown.
“I’ve been working hard to become Japan’s top female university student, just like I did during my high school years. I want to become someone that other women can admire.”
Hikaru attended Aoyama Gakuin University from kindergarten, and joined a talent agency in the first grade of elementary school, continuing her idol activities until she was 17.
“To be honest, I’m shy around people I don’t know well, but I tried to stand on stage as much as possible and sing and dance for the people who support me with their valuable time and money. As a result, the number of people supporting me has gradually increased.”
Her great-grandfather is Masayoshi Ōhira, who served as the 68th and 69th Prime Minister of Japan. While it’s common for descendants of prominent politicians like Daigo, the grandson of former Prime Minister Noboru Takeshita, to pursue careers in the entertainment industry, Hikaru has refrained from publicizing such lineage.
“I am me. I wanted to compete based on my own abilities. That’s why I also quit being an idol by my own will. I’m about to become a university student soon, and I want to explore new paths.”
Despite receiving enthusiastic offers from entertainment agencies that manage many female announcers, she turned a deaf ear to them. Currently, she is a student entrepreneur who has founded a company called “Queencard” and aims to be the youngest female executive to be listed on the stock market.
“It’s still in the preparatory stage, but I want to start a Femtech business that solves women’s health issues using the power of technology.”
Even if she achieves the remarkable feat of winning the three beauty pageants, it may just be a milestone in her life.
From the March 22, 2024 issue of FRIDAY
Interview and text by： Yuji Yanagawa (nonfiction writer) PHOTO： Shinji Hamasaki
