Sculpting bodies

Exhibiting washboard-flat stomachs, burnished biceps, rippling pecs and lats and mandatory poses, Zoroastrian body builders strutted their stuff afore a panel of judges at the Eighth All India Zoroastrian Body Building Championship, to the accompaniment of music, claps and cheers from the appreciative crowd at the Rustom Baug grounds on February 14, 2009.

Giving many a strongman half his age a run for his muscle, 46-year-old Navroze Dapotawala of Surat, representing fitness guru Mickey Mehta’s 360° Gym, picked up the title of Mr Zoroastrian 2009 for the second time in a row. Making the right moves with confidence and elan, Xereus Zend, representing Cusrow Baug, won the Prof Tehmurasp Sarkari Trophy sponsored by Viraf Chiniwala for the Best Poser. The NarYman KaiKhosrow Dubash Foundation organized the Championship as well as the Third All India Superfit Contest conducted on the same day at the same venue.

With Mehta putting the Superfit contestants through a punishing regimen of jumping jacks, pushups, mountain climbing, abdominal crunches and squats, which left many a contestant out of breath and out of steam, it was left to the regular gym goers to pick up top honors. "Trust me, mountain climbing is the toughest exercise,” said Mehta as he conducted the rounds and encouraged the participants. "To do 20 of these you require 20 months training!” Aresh Mehershahi of 360° Gym was adjudged Mr Superfit 2009, winning the title for the second consecutive year. Porus Dutia and Rayomand Sirwala stood second and third respectively. With just two girls participating this time, Hufriya Kavarana was Miss Superfit 2009, also for the second time in a row. Ayesha Billimoria, winner of many a medal in athletics, was the runner-up.

Receiving a huge round of applause were the veterans — 55-year-old Alborze Irani of Poona who stood first (and who was last year’s winner as well), 52-year-old Hoshang Poonawala of 360° Gym and 74-year-old Adi Patel of the Sir Ness Wadia Club, Rustom Baug who gamely went through the same regimen, albeit with fewer repetitions.

(First row) Top three: Mr Zoroastrian Navroze Dapotawala, Rumy Zarir, Rushad Khambatta. (Second row) Miss Superfit Hufriya Kavarana and Best Poser Xereus Zend with Viraf Chiniwala

Earlier, Patel was the cynosure of all eyes as he went through an eye-popping range of difficult exercises — swinging the torso up and down 40 times while lying head down on an inclined bench and holding a 10 lb plate on his chest, revolving a 16 lb club held with one hand behind and around his neck and shoulders in a continuous swinging action, head stand with cycling action on a small table and finally the twists, turns and holding steady on the Roman Rings! "He is an amazing character,” marvelled Rustom Jasoomoney, Sir Ness Wadia Club president. "My great respects to this man. He is a genius in fitness. I can teach well but I cannot do all that!” Mehta complimented the septuagenarian performer.

The organizers instituted a new trophy this year in memory of the late Bombay Parsi Punchayet trustee Rustom Tirandaz. A weightlifting champion of Bombay University during his student days, Tirandaz was a great supporter of the body building competition and had not missed attending a single edition since its inception seven years ago, stated Jasoomoney. Tirandaz’s widow Armaity presented the trophy to the overall winner of the Power Lifting competition, 22-year-old Meherzad Chinoy. "I feel great as I lifted 152.50 kg (with bar) with a body weight of 80 kg which is a record. Earlier there had been a higher weight lifted but with a heavier body weight and I was aiming to break that,” says Chinoy who is a trainer at Qi gym in the Eros cinema building at Churchgate.

Top row (l to r) Yazdi Desai, Hutoxi Doodhwala, powerlifter Meherzad Chinoy, Viraf Panthaki, Mr Sawant, Navroze Dapotawala, Kersi Kasad, Viraf Chiniwala, Armaity Tirandaz, Raju Modak and Rustom Jasoomoney; (2nd row): Mickey Mehta (third from left) with Superfit veterans Hoshang Poonawala, Adi Patel and Alborze Irani; Kumi Daroowala, Ratoo Dastur, Mr Superfit Aresh Mehershahi and Mickey Mehta

The Power Lifting contest on February 8 had 36 competitors from Bombay, Poona and Surat. Mehernaz Raisi, Adi Irani, Burgess Daruwala, Yazad Bhe­sa­nia, Chinoy and Shahrukh Katpitia were the winners in the different categories.

Dapotawala trains at his own Seven Sea gym in Surat and is looking forward to the senior nationals in body building in April in Calcutta. In January, Dapotawala had stood second in the 40-50 years age group at an all India competition at Trichur in Kerala. He has also won the Mr Gujarat title in his group. Dapotawala hopes to take part in the Mr Asia competition in July/August this year and is looking for sponsors, he says, "as the cost is over two lakh rupees.”

Overcoming spinal surgery, a severe tennis elbow and a host of other injuries from earlier participation in football, athletics, etc, 33-year-old Rumy Zarir (360° Gym) took to body building just over a year ago. "I have to be very careful because of the injuries I have. I take precautions during my workouts, like wearing a support band and having a colleague hold my elbow. I will not give in to my injuries. They are a part and parcel of sports. You have to live with it,” declares the body builder who stood first in the 65 kg weight group. Zarir expresses gratitude to noted orthopedic surgeon Dr Jamshed Bunshah who had operated on his spine and to homeopath Dr Persis Rabadi whose treatment, he says, has really helped him. Four months before a competition, body builders go on a severe diet. His mother Gool Bilimoria and his wife Vahbiz, he says, are immensely supportive, preparing meals that are far from a foodie’s delight — boiled chicken, boiled fish, raw vegetables, salads, no rice, no chapatis, no tea or dairy products! Mehta has been a great help and morale booster and is a great force in solving problems, he asserts. A week after the Rustom Baug contest, Zarir took part in the Mr Tardeo competition which has participants from all over Bombay, standing third among the 16 body builders in his group, he informs us. Zarir’s future plans include partnering Mehta in his gym ventures and in his core management team.

"As a kid I was on the heavier side. Even now I would be classified as heavy by any insurance or medical yardstick. Being heavy has been the reason for my being fit for I have always strived to be in good shape,” declares Irani who is a chartered engineer by profession and who runs a company called Vermont Engineering Private Limited with his colleague, marine engineer Behram Siganporia, undertaking turnkey engineering projects and consultancy. "Given all the issues that one faces by way of making a living and meeting social responsibilities, I still average three days a week at the gym, though there are spells where I get six days and sometimes none.” Irani’s father and uncle were into boxing and body building. "Uncle Kekoo R. Irani, now 82, was a body builder, having won the Mr Bombay, Mr Poona and Mr India titles in his group, so as a kid I always felt motivated to try and achieve that physique. I represented my school in hockey, in college I was better off, being a light heavyweight silver medallist in boxing at Poona University and silver medallist in shot put, Shivaji University,” narrates the mechanical engineering graduate from Sangli in an e-mail response to Parsiana’s questions.

The body building contest was conducted by the members of the Indian Body Building Federation under the leadership of Viraf Panthaki and Suresh Kadam and was followed by a much appreciated demonstration of sinew by other national level body builders. The power lifting was conducted by the All India Power Lifting Federation. The entire event was organized by Panthaki, Jasoomoney and Hutoxi Doodhwala and a dedicated team of Rustom Baug committee members, in particular Shahen Mistry, Homiar Shroff, Hoshi Batliwala and Percy Bahmani, with the last three judging the Superfit contest as well.