Folk it out

Aarti Pandey (right; in blue) at one of her sessions

As a student, Aarti Pandey competed and won several zonal and national-level folk dance events. But because dance wasn't considered a burgeoning career at the time, she moved on to pursue an MBA and work in the corporate world for years. "Dance helped me overcome depression and made me realise it was my calling," she says.

She started teaching Latin dance styles at first, but realised over time that most dance fitness styles - Zumba, pilates or piloxing - were western dance forms. "These are styles that we cannot call our own. This pushed me to recall how folk dance helped me enjoy the moves while building stamina and muscle. I thought, ‘Why not merge our own traditional forms with fitness?'" she recalls.

And so, Folk Fitness was born in August 2016. It draws upon 122 registered Indian folk dance forms. From the popular koli, garba, bhangra, bihu folk dances to lesser-known forms like lambadi, tabal-chongli, bidesia, jhumar, faag, and dhamaal, it creates unique workouts across age groups. She offers tweaked sessions for children and senior citizens, too.

Rajeev Gupta, founder of Bhangracise, who won the Point of Light honour

"The hour-long sessions start with meditation, followed by a warm-up and then the main workout is segregated into movements for the upper body and lower body, and cardio. We end with stretching and shavasana, Pandey elaborates.

Every folk dance derives movements from their respective profession or regional influences, she explains. "The koli dance uses pull and push movements for arms when fishermen row boats; bihu has less foot movement but more pelvic and core movements to keep the core strong. Punjab has flat land, so bhangra and giddha have more bouncy leg movements," Pandey illustrates.

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Fitness from daily routines

(Left) Twinkle Talwar of Folka Fitness

Mumbai-based Twinkle Talwar uses a combination of national and international folk dances and village activities to create her version of folk fitness routines. "Daily activities in rural India, like walking with a matka and using a hand-pump, or making lassi, are broken down and converted into steps. Our focus is also on neglected tribal folk dances that we incorporate in the form of tribal kicks and hand movements. Other forms include Shiva fitness [based on tandava], Mahabali workout and classical potpourri," says Talwar.

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Throw in some masala

Love grooving to the beats of dhol? You'll love the Masala Bhangra workout. Developed by Sarina Jain, it combines modern bhangra with high-intensity, energy and muscle training moves. Celebrity trainer and founder of JG's Fitness Centre, Shalini Bhargava is a master trainer in the form and conducts fun sessions.

Log on to @shalini_bhargava on Instagram

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