HUBBALLI: In the land of Ho Chi Minh, a quiet revolution is taking shape, asana by asana. For the last 10 years a group of seven men from Hubballi has been spreading the message of yoga.
Working as yoga mentors, Rajeev Kumar Somaraddi, Santosh Umachagi, Muttappa Umachagi, Iranna Matad, Devaraj Devadiga, Appu Parangi, and Venkatesh have trained over one lakh people in the last 10 years. They teach mostly in Ho Chi Minh City and Bien Hoa.
“It has been almost 10 years we have been teaching yoga here. It has been a very good response from the people here. The people perform yoga here regularly,” said Somaraddi. On International Yoga Day, the Hubba'li mentors performed yoga in front of an enthralled audience. A walkathon was held in Ho Chi Minh City. Participants performed 100 Surya Namaskars in the morning and evening.
A native of Kundgol near Hubballi, Somaraddi learnt yoga at Shivananda Math during their high school days. Once a passion, yoga is now their profession.
Stating that the people of Vietnam love yoga and nearly 90 per cent of them perform yoga regularly, Somaraddi said that Vietnamese students participate in international competitions. “People here are health conscious and maintain their level of fitness,” he said.
“Celebration of International Yoga Day was needed to create awareness about yoga. It is a necessity for the present generation,” he said. “People from different walks of life, engineers, doctors, professors and students, have learnt yoga here. I taught yoga to immigrants from Australia, the US and Russia in Vietnam,” he added.