Bend it like Bebo or stretch tall like Deepika Padukone... We know these Bollywood ladies make yoga look so glam on Instagram. However, Anshuka Parwani, the one who gets them to push their limits during training sessions, makes sure all these divas get the asanas right. A sought-after celebrity yoga instructor, Parwani is the reason behind the fit beauties.
She was a national gold medal-winning swimmer, a commercial pilot, and a girl with dreams... She recalls that, as a kid, she was ‘put in the pool’ to strengthen her lungs and counter asthma. Growing up, she loved the adrenaline of flying a plane until life decided to throw a curveball. A near-fatal accident changed the course of her life. She sustained multiple injuries, leaving her medically unfit to continue her commercial flying journey.
This caused her to be in bed for almost eight months. Seeing the impact of the incident, not just physically but mentally, Parwani’s mother led her into yoga along with physiotherapy. Probably a decision that changed her life. “The decision was to do yoga not only for me but also to spread it to as many people as I could. Yoga came to me at one of my lowest phases in life. Yoga is truly magical, and I experienced how it changed my life. That was a pivotal moment,” says the yoga and holistic wellness expert.
Parwani does not just train the créme de la créme of Bollywood but lives by the philosophy that balance is the key to her fitness. “Keep it balanced. It is not only about what you eat and how you move. It is also about your thoughts and the people around you. Everything has to be balanced. You cannot be on any extreme,” says Parwani.
Parwani’s call to fame was when she started training Kareena Kapoor Khan. She also revealed that Kapoor-Khan was not just her first celebrity student but also her first ever
student. “The first time I went into the class, I didn’t know that I was going to meet her. It was my first-ever class as a teacher. So I was initially taken aback, but 30 seconds into the session, I switched on that teacher mode. You don’t think about who you are teaching,” she recalls. She also recently travelled to London to train Deepika Padukone during the latter’s visit to BAFTA.
Spilling the beans
Here are some of the favourite asanas of B-Town stars:
Kareena Kapoor Khan: The Chakrasana series
Alia Bhatt: Kapotasana
Ananya Pandey: Handstands
