Tejal Sinha
Everyone indeed has their share of ups and downs but we always have to keep on learning from our mistakes. But, Yashovardhan Birla, recognised as Yash Birla had a tragic past, which could have shaken anyone, but he, on the other hand, became a capable leader and has been actively involved in expanding his family’s business empire in India and beyond. Since there is something to be learned from every setback, he believes one must proceed with all of the lessons from the incident. These difficulties in life, he says, are important for one’s growth. when he took over the business, it was all of a sudden, but through experience, mistakes, and guidance from stalwarts like Rahul Bajaj, and Aditya Vikram Birla, they kind of trained him on how to look at things from an entrepreneurial chairman’s point of view, and that’s what eventually happened.
People see him as a scion of a leading Indian family, but he’s had more than his fair share of blows. Recalling on how he coped on the tragic loss, he shares, “When my parents passed away, I went into a lot of emotional wreckage. But since I was 14, I used to read the Upanishads and was curious about life and beyond. All of these learnings came up as a memory and made me realise that this is not the end, my family is not gone, it’s just the transmigration of the spirit and its the body. So if I go into prayer and meditation maybe I’ll able to feel something which I can’t see and maybe they’ll be able to feel something which they are not here to see. That belief takes a lot because it takes you way ahead of all the negativity. On the death anniversary of my family, I have a Bhajan or kirtan or a Satsang every year and I just feel love and prayers are everywhere, so what are we remorsing about, they’re here with me. Spirituality helps you to understand that they’re there, you just feel it from within. That connection never goes and you get immense strength. I think that can send such a positive message to so many young people out there who have to cope with loss.”
Having suffered something like this is such a large blow losing for an entire family at one time at such a young age, and many might even just give up on the idea of God altogether, but he feels we need to understand that everything in life happens with the purpose. Today, Yash is one of the inspirational fitness icons of the country, and has also authored a book and recently opened a gym as well. While pursuing his education, while people would go to bar and enjoy every evening, he decided to explore the gym. With the gym having an energetic atmosphere; he got inspired by being there, began working out, and saw a difference in my appearance in just 10 days.
“Once I start seeing something progressing, I don’t like to regress. The intention was to be fit and healthy as well as to look and feel good about myself. From there, it progressed into a lifelong passion. So I continued to exercise, and here I am in front of you now still doing the same thing, many years later. I have always admired a lot of people who are deeply passionate about fitness, just like me. But my source of inspiration has come from within since the beginning. I am my own competition and have continued to work hard to become a better version of myself. I believe that exercising brings discipline, a fit body leads to a fit mind as well as brings discipline into other areas of life.”
Growing up he was an introvert person, with a few friends from school. He would rather return home and study or spend time with family instead of playing football or tennis after school like the majority of other lads. As a Marwari boy, his diet was filled with pastries, munchies, mithai, ghee, and oil-heavy Marwari meals. With his grandma, who had always pampered him, thought him that the more food he ate, the taller and stronger he would become. But his parents on the other side thought that he should be more sporty, fit, and taller. However, this was a factor that was unacceptable to his parents.
Do you also feel that getting into fitness needs a specific time, or age? Well, he shares, “After a few decades now, knowing the different kinds of benefits that I have personally experienced, I believe that Fitness is always a journey and that is what people always miss out on. It is a journey that continually evolves, not a destination. Therefore, if the fitness journey is over, it can’t evolve.
If the voyage has not yet begun, it is always acceptable to begin it at any age and at any moment. The one catch with fitness is that you have to be consistent; you can’t just work out when you have time and then skip it when you don’t. It is a habit that must be formed. Once that is done, people can embark on learning about the different ways they can work on their bodies with the help of the trainer. This is one of many aspects of weight training that I focus on in my fitness book called ‘Building The Perfect Body’ to help other aspiring fitness enthusiasts on their fitness journey. When I don’t work out, I feel incomplete, I feel restless. I work out on Sundays too. Sometimes when you feel lethargic, you go to the gym and feel exhilaration.”
Fitness has always taught him it is a part of his life that is symbiotically in sync with his spiritual beliefs. If you are healthier, you are happier! Our lives are like a tree that has many branches – family, mental state of being, work and careers, friends and possessions, and lastly, but equally importantly, he says fitness and physical state. “When these branches are all balanced, it is only then that the tree of life can be said to be perfectly aligned and in sync with its surroundings.
This has been my major philosophy in life – to have everything in its right place. Fitness is ultimate. As I always say, it is a component of 360-degree mental, spiritual, and physical well-being. Fitness is therefore a crucial component because it is impossible to think clearly without a healthy body and functioning hormones. Therefore, one of the crucial steps that motivates me to pursue that so vigorously is physical fitness. The basis for all I do is spirituality. Every aspect of my life, including my work, relationships, and health, is rooted in spirituality.”
