My Story: 'Through All The Struggles, Failures & Victories, My Only Mission Has Been To Make My Parents Proud'

When I was in school, I used to be bullied because I was very skinny. I was never confident enough to face people because of how I looked. To make matters worse, I was just an average child at school.

When I thought of myself in the future, I used to think that I would be on a night shift working in front of a computer for a meagre salary. On the other hand, destiny had a whole new plan for me. When I started going to the gym, I did not think of bodybuilding as a career. My only aim back then was to look strong and confident.

A friend of mine pushed me to stand on the stage, but I never had enough confidence. Finally, when I did my first show, I won a gold in the 55-kg category, which is achievable if I look back now. However, the push that gave me is incomparable.

In my initial days, I would save up every penny to be able to pay my gym fees and manage my diet. There have been so many instances when I have taken a loan from my friends to be able to work out. While my family appreciated my small victories on the stage, they knew that I could never earn a living out of it.

I Would Save My Prize Money For My Diet

Once, after my initial wins, the manager of my gym, and now my coach, called me and asked me if I was serious about what I was doing. Once he was convinced, he agreed to provide me with personal training without charging a rupee.

I would use the prize money from my competitions for my diet and manage my workouts. I have been disqualified from events for participating in different events so that I could book my flight tickets.

I was preparing for my event in March 2020, but the lockdown happened, and the event was postponed indefinitely. At that point, it felt like I was struggling, and there was no end to it. Nonetheless, I had my online clients, and therefore, I had a steady income, so I was thriving.

On August 22, I slept after delivering the necessary diet plans to my clients, but the next day when I woke up, my account on Instagram was disabled without any specific reason. I tried my best to retrieve it but could not. That was the only source of my income. On the lowest day of my life, when I thought that maybe everything was over for me, a close friend motivated me to start again.

A Stigma Associated With Being A Gym Trainer

No matter what I achieved or how much I earned, the stigma regarding a person being a gym trainer is still prevalent in our society. My parents could never proudly say that their son is a 'gym trainer'. My driving force is my family. Therefore, I knew that I just wanted to see them happy and proud no matter what I did. I saved up as much as possible and opened my gym on May 28, 2021. Now I have a social standing, and people know I am a professional bodybuilder and have my gym.

I was amongst the top five athletes for Mr India this year. Bodybuilding is a psychological sport that breaks you to shreds more than physical.

While there still is a long way to go, I know that I have come far from where I used to be. If it were not for the chain of events, maybe I would be sitting in front of a computer screen and doing my night shift. Nonetheless, if someone asks me what my goal is, I do not know that; I want to live this day to the fullest and that whatever happens tomorrow will be for the better.

If you too have an inspiring story to tell the world, send us your story at mystory@thelogicalindian.com