BENGALURU: At 4 am every morning, N Eshwara sets out from Mysuru on a Bengaluru-bound train to reach the City Railway Station where he works as a mechanic. At 4 pm, he heads back to Mysuru after which he is out on the roads ferrying passengers in his auto. At 7.30, he’s at his gym to train in powerlifting, post which he once again dons the auto driver’s uniform. This has been the national powerlifting champ’s routine who works doubly hard to support his family and fund the expenses to pursue his first love, powerlifting.
Eshwara is a national and state-level champion, who has won over 50 medals. He was even selected for the International Powerlifting Championship in Dubai, and has also won a gold at the ‘National Level Bench Press Championship’ in Ranchi recently, and is currently training for the Maharashtra National Bench Press Championship to be held next month.
Pursuing weightlifting can be challenging and expensive, and being the breadwinner of the family, Eshwara needed to earn that extra income to pursue his passion. Already employed with the Bengaluru Railway Department as a mechanic, he also works as an Ola auto driver in Mysuru, and shuttles between Bengaluru and Mysuru. A stable income from the railway department and flexible working hours as an Ola auto driver has enabled him to take time out for his passion.
Growing up, Eshwara always wanted to become an entrepreneur, but as the breadwinner in his family, he needed a steady source of income, which is why he joined the Indian Railways as a mechanic. To supplement his income, Eshwara enrolled with Ola in 2017. “I needed an additional source of income to support my family as well as pursue powerlifting, which is an expensive hobby. The money I make from driving is utilised for nutritional supplements and training,” he says.
Hailing from a “poor family”, Eshwara says that his interest in powerlifting began when he was into bodybuilding. “Earlier I was into bodybuilding, where you only get state-level medals. In powerlifting, there are more opportunities, and hence this choice.”
Even though he has to pursue two jobs to support his passion, in addition to looking after his family, Eshwara says that he gets his inspiration to work hard on a daily basis because he has his mind set on his goals. “If you have the mind to achieve, you can do it,” he says, adding, “Powerlifting is not as well-known a sport like cricket in India. I have been trying to train as many people as possible, which I do through a group I have formed in Mysuru,” he says.
He’s got his eyes set on a big goal right now, which he says, is to live to see the day when he will be able to hold the Indian flag on an international level and bag a gold medal for the country.