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Striving to be the best
Shodhan Rai
IF YOU are a die-hard fan of body- building, absolutely enthused about strong, proportionate muscle power, then read on.
Presenting to you is the namma Bengaluru boy, Shodhan Rai, second runner-up of Mr. Universe junior competition, held in Paris.
Now wait a minute — this is not a Mr. Universe where you have tall hunks walking smart with designer outfits.
What counts here is your perfect, strong physique. Yes, it is the Mr. Universe body building competition and Shodhan proudly stood there as one among the top three, in the below 21 years category.
``I was inspired by my father. He is also a body builder,'' says this final year B. Com student from K.L.E. Nijalingappa College, who entered the body building field when he was 17. Contrary to his field of interest, which appears to many as something very hard and daring, Shodhan comes across as a soft-spoken and balanced person.
Ever grateful to his family, he says "they have supported me in all my ventures''. He does not forget his friends and teachers too, who pitched in their bits in making him successful.
A self-made body-builder, Shodhan took his first lessons in this field at the Classic Gym. "I don`t have an official instructor or trainer. I workout in the gym and my father takes care of my diet," he says.
Though young, Shodhan has many achievements to his credit. He secured top place in the national-level competition held in Jabalpur. He was also Mr. Bangalore University in 2000-01 and recently won Mr. Pizza Corner title too.
Adding to his long list is the Rajyothsava Award given to him from his college. "But the best part was winning the Mr Universe award, it was an amazing experience," he grins.
So, how was the competition unique? "The major aspect I observed was that foreign body builders are better built, and more proportionate.
We lack it,'' he says. And Shodhan attributes this to the lack of proper infrastructure in our country. And what is his goal? "Improvement. I need to put on weight, gain more mass,'' he says.
Being well focused to this field, Shodhan has his share of hitches. And the major hassle he faces is finance. "I could not attend the Mr. World contest in Spain, because of shortage of finance,'' he says in a low tone. Explaining that even for the Mr. Universe he had to fend for himself, he said: "I bore all my expenditures which worked out to about Rs. 65,000.''
But still he is confident of continuing in this field. "Enough of studies. I want to make body building my profession,'' he declares.
He is now getting ready to participate in the Nationals to be organised by the end of this month. But his all-time aim: "I wish to do a lot better in Mr. Universe next time.''
And finally, turning personal, how does this macho describe himself as an individual, apart from being body builder?
"Well, I don't know. You have to ask my friends,'' comes a soft reply. Hello, anybody there to tell us?
By K.Satyamurty
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Life
Bangalore
Chennai
Coimbatore
Delhi
Hyderabad
Kochi
Madurai
Thiruvananthapuram
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