Former Miss Universe pays tribute to Princess Bajrakitiyabha

Porntip “Bui” Nakhirunkanok Simon, Thailand’s Miss Universe 1988, has joined the nation in mourning the passing of Her Royal Highness Princess Bajrakitiyabha Narendiradebyavati Krom Luang Rajasarinisiribajra Mahavajrarajadhita, offering a deeply respectful tribute through her personal social media account.

Her message came after the Bureau of the Royal Household announced that Her Royal Highness Princess Bajrakitiyabha had passed away peacefully at 7.48pm on 11 June 2026 at King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital, Thai Red Cross Society. Her Royal Highness had been receiving medical treatment there since 15 December 2022 after losing consciousness due to a cardiac condition.

Porntip wrote that she had woken to the profoundly sorrowful news of Her Royal Highness’s passing. She paid tribute to Her Royal Highness’s boundless kindness and compassion, saying these qualities would remain in the hearts of the Thai people.

She also recalled the great honour of having been granted several private audiences with Her Royal Highness when the Princess was still a child.

Among her cherished memories was an occasion when Her Royal Highness, then young, had been seated on her lap. Porntip said she would always remember Her Royal Highness’s bright smile, keen intelligence and graceful presence.

Her tribute adds to the outpouring of mourning for Her Royal Highness, who was widely associated with public service and justice-related initiatives. Her Royal Highness established the Kamlangjai Project in 2006 to provide opportunities for inmates, a royal initiative that later inspired further rehabilitation programmes.

The Bureau of the Royal Household has said His Majesty the King has graciously issued a Royal Command for royal funeral rites to be arranged with the highest honours in accordance with royal tradition. The Royal Remains will lie in state at Piman Rattaya Throne Hall within the Grand Palace.