Whiel the world celebrated Yoga Day yesterday and many celebrities posted about what yoga means to them on that one day, we tracked Bollywood divas who have made yoga an intrinsic part of their lifestyle. From Kareena Kapoor Khan, Alia Bhatt and Deepika Padukone to Ananya Panday and Rakul Preet Singh, these celebrities in particular swear by yoga. If there’s one person who knows that for sure, its their celebrity yoga trainer Anshuka Parwani. In an exclusive interview with NDTV’s Abira Dhar, Anshuka described in detail the dedication that her first student Kareena Kapoor had towards her wellness journey and how Deepika Padukone’s yoga routine was dramatically altered to work for her pregnancy. When asked what is the best part of being a celebrity yoga coach, Anshuka said, “Seeing their discipline first hand. It is unmatchable. Everybody, but my first student was Kareena Kapoor Khan. So, I remember waking up with her because I used to be at many outdoors with her. At 4 AM and doing a 4:30 to 5:30 AM yoga class and then I would probably go back and rest and have breakfast, but she would go into a full day of shoot. So that sort of hard work and discipline is resilient. And I see that with everybody.”
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Anshuka Parwani continued, “Just recently I went with Deepika Padukone to the BAFTA Awards. And even before her heavy day, travelling from here to London, she made sure that she got her sessions in. So, I think it is just beautiful how they manage time. It is just a skill that I want to have.”
Talking about Alia Bhatt, Kareena Kapoor and Deepika Padukone’s favourite asanas, the celebrity wellness coach said, “Of course, you know the Alia pose, it has become so famous. Alia loves the kapotasana, she has a deep back. DP [Deepika Padukone] loves her inversions. Kareena Kapoor… I just think Surya Namaskar goes with Kareena because I remember everybody coming in when I first shared that Kareena Kapoor did her first 100 Surya Namaskar then, despite it being there for hundreds of years, it became Kareena Kapoor’s Surya Namaskar.”
The wellness coach then revealed that one asana these divas “love to hate” varies. “Different ones on different days. But I am somebody who says that the asana you don’t want to practice is the one you need to do the most. So, it keeps changing.”
Anshuka Parwani added that asanas like Bharamari Pranayam, anulom vilom and legs up on the wall are some of the best postures for stress management.
While naming three of the most challenging asanas that these B-Town stars have conquered with her, the yoga trainer said, “Sirsasana, the headstand number one. Any arm balance, there are so many, there is Bakasana which is your crow pose that’s the second one and the kapotasana which is the Alia pose. It is a very difficult advanced asana to get into and she does it with so much grace.”
Anshuka said while she loves headstands, it truly depends on the days which asana is her favourite. Talking about it, she said, “I feel so good, after being upside down it is impossible.”
The celebrity coach went into detail about how Deepika Padukone’s yoga routine has been significantly altered from her Gehraiyaan days to adjust to each trimester of her pregnancy. “Right now we are looking at it very holistically, she is carrying a child so we are looking at it very carefully. We’re going through a prenatal routine with her constantly, ofcourse, making sure every trimester is different, preparing for a very healthy baby.” For more on Deepika’s prenatal wellness journey click on the link below.