TV star starts academy to propagate 'acting' yoga

Well-known theatre and television actor Lalit Parimoo has opened a new academy in suburban Andheri where he teaches a new form of yoga called Abhinay Yoga.

As the words indicate, Abhinay Yoga merges the art of acting with the practice of yoga. Parimoo has been practising Abhinay Yoga for the past three years and set up the academy a year ago along with three trained volunteers.

So what are the benefits of practising Abhinay Yoga? According to Parimoo, “As Abhinaya Yoga deals more with psychology, it develops the mind more and makes it strong. It creates more awareness about one's emotional world and makes an individual realise that it is his duty to transform the negative emotions into positive feelings. It is a continuous process and takes a lot of time.”

Parimoo claims that Abhinay Yoga can be of great help in treating lifestyle diseases, particularly stress, as it creates conditions for catharsis and makes a person creative and aware.

“Anybody who wishes to become a professional actor, those who want to release their pent-up emotions, those who wish to learn acting and apply it in real life, those who wish to learn higher methods of concentration and meditation, and those who wish to become more creative in their expressions can enrol for the workshops," he says.

But just in case you were wondering, Parimoo clarifies that one does not have to be a professional actor to perform Abhinay Yoga.

Each batch consists of minimum seven and maximum 12 students and the fees are Rs10,000 a month. A two-day weekend workshop costs about Rs2,500. “I work on the principle of Krnvantovishamnartakam. The whole world is the clientele. I am putting into practice what poets have said. The whole world is a stage and we are merely players in this cosmic drama and the sooner we know our roles the better for us,” says Parimoo.