Don't judge a book by its cover. Although a cliche, this idiom is apt for our guest this week on Buzz By The Bay. We caught up with Yash Birla, scion of one of India's most prominent families. A fitness addict with bold fashion choices, he is a familiar face in Mumbai's glitzy social scene. However, there is a lot more to him than designer clothes and a muscular physique. Yash is deeply spiritual and very well-versed in vedas. He was drawn to Hindu philosophy at the young age of 13, and that's what helped him cope with the tragic loss of his parents, Ashok and Sunanda Birla, and sister Sujata, in an Indian Airlines plane crash on February 14, 1990. Yash opens up about how he overcame the trauma and much more in an interview with Anushka Jagtiani.
You are a fitness icon, have authored a book and recently opened a gym. When did you get into fitness?
Fitness has been a part of my life since I went to study in the United States. It was a student town. It had some bars on the road, but I don't drink. So one fine day, I said let me look around the town. It had all these young students working out. A lot of energy. I said why should I waste my time looking for other things. Let me immediately start working out. This was more than two decades ago and I am still at it.
There's a beautiful quote from a book 'The Little Prince', that says, “What is essential is often invisible to the eyes". You have a very deep spiritual side. What spiritual philosophy do you believe in and when did you start?
From the age of 13, I would go to a bookshop and pick up upanishads and bhagavad gita. I am basically from a religious and spiritual family. I was fascinated with life after death and the idea of vairagya, which is leaving the world and going to live in the mountains. When I went to the US, I had taken cassettes of bhagavad gita. My mother said, “You're a student. Why do you want to do this penance.” I said, “Because I love it.”
People see you as a scion of a leading Indian family, but you've had more than your fair share of blows. Can you share with us how you coped with such immense loss at a young age?
When my parents passed away I went through a lot of emotional wreckage. It was catastrophic. When I was about to break down, the teachings of upanishads struck me that this is not the end. It's just a transmigration of the spirit. So if I go into prayer and meditation maybe I will be able to feel something I can't see. I actually started feeling that. They passed away on February 14 which is also Valentine's day. Everyone used to celebrate while I used to get agitated and very sad. For years, I used to go into remorse on that day. Now when that day comes, I am there with a smile.