When he is not working out at the gym, M Saravanan is in his kitchen, boiling eggs and chicken for his next meal. The 27-year-old bodybuilder spends 12 hours at the gym when preparing for a championship, and on regular days, eight to six hours. He is the title winner of the South Asian Bodybuilding Championship that was held at Maldives last month. Saravanan, who is from Namakkal, shifted to Chennai in 2019 chasing a dream: a ripped physique, medals, fame, and eventually, a Government job. Many others like him from smaller cities across Tamil Nadu move to the city to pursue the sport that is among the most demanding of them all. What drives them?
“It is love for the sport in my case,” says Chennai-based M Arasu, team Indian Railways’ and team India’s coach. The 53-year-old, who won the Mr India title six times, has mentored many young men from the State, and continues to do so. “I got into bodybuilding since I grew up seeing my father work out every day,” he says, adding that it was this sport that secured a job at the Indian Railways for him.
