A Mumbai-based physician will set up an 'International Laughter University' on the outskirts of India's IT city in April 2011, but it won't be handing out any degrees

He'll teach you how to laugh

A Mumbai-based physician will set up an 'International Laughter University' on the outskirts of India's IT city in April 2011, but it won't be handing out any degrees

The university will teach people how to laugh more

The physician from Mumbai has purchased 10 acres of land on the outskirts of Bengaluru, 5 km from the city on the road to Mysore, to set up "the world's first International Laughter University", where he will hold a teachers training course on Laughter Yoga, which combines laughter with pranayam.

While the university will not offer any degrees, Kataria aims to bring joy into people's stressed lives. "This is the world's first unconventional university which does not offer any academic qualifications and degree courses. Instead, it will teach people how to live and how to bring more laughter, joy, happiness and good health into their lives," says Kataria, who plans to begin operations by April 2011.

"There will be certified teachers and leadership training courses so that people can start laughter groups in parks, community centres, companies, colleges and schools," he says.

Kataria's plans for the 'university' however are no laughing matter. It includes building an auditorium, training rooms, lodging facility for 200 people, a library, dining hall, meditation rooms, an administrative block and a staff residence.

"The first phase of the project will cost between Rs 7 and Rs 10 crore, which will take nearly 18 months to two years to complete," says Kataria.

Till then, Kataria plans to start teaching from mud houses, which will take three months to construct.

"Laughter Yoga is a health-building system and it has great connection with traditional yoga. Therefore, we will set up the department of yoga, where people can acquire a deep knowledge of traditional yoga. We are also incorporating different systems of healing like naturopathy, Ayurveda and acupressure in order to help people attain good health in a natural way rather than depending on drugs and medicines," Kataria says.

Anyone's free to join, but Kataria has not decided on what the fees or course structure. "The underlying USP of the university is to de-stress and find an inner-self capable of coping with life's challenges, so we have proposed some unusual departments for the Laughter Yoga University."