Daredevil sport catches fancy of Hyderabadis

Hyderabad: Slowly paving its way into the mainstream culture, Parkour’s movements are now more than just viral videos on YouTube. The real breakthrough movements of Parkour are considered to be Hollywood movies like Casino Royale, District B13 or any movie of Jackie Chan.

Parkour had also impact on the Indian pop culture with movies like Commando, Ek tha Tiger, Heropanti, Hello and Boss.

Yasaswy Modukuru, 28, a psychologist, who gives personal Parkour training , says, “Everyone knows what Parkour is now and this is to do with the viral sensation it created among the people. A decade ago it was not normal for people to jump from buildings. I have been practising Parkour since 10 years and there are also, you have no particular target, it is something you keep getting better at.”
Developed in France by Raymond Belle and his son David and the latter's group of friends (Yamakasi) in the late 1980s, the training practice was popularized through films, documentaries and advertisements.

Parkour is an obstacle training course with an aim to get from one point to another in a complex environment in the fastest and most efficient way possible. It includes several activities like running, climbing, swinging, rolling and so on.

Inspired by the documentary on the Yamakasi, Abhinav went from learning the practice and its techniques by watching YouTube videos to opening up the first ever Parkour training academy in India.

“Parkour is like any other form of physical activity. You do not need any prior fitness experience to practice it. As you do more of it, over a period of time you develop into it and you will pick it up gradually. The practice trains your overall body and mind to get used to the forms and movements of the course,” said Abhinav , 27, founder of Abhinav Parkour Academy.

Founded in 2015, Abhinav Parkour Academy now trains around 50-60 eager members with the age group starting from 5 to 44 years who practice every day in the gym of the academy which now has two branches in Kondapur and Madhapur. The fee structure starts from Rs 6000 per month and it also includes other monthly and yearly packages.

“Our main aim is to teach all forms of fitness and get the Parkour movement going. We practice daily and try to focus on the different techniques and methods to achieve the goal of the practitioner,” adds Abhinav.

Likith, 20, a student who practises at Abhinav Parkour Academy, says, “I was recommended to do Parkour by my dance teacher and I eventually joined this academy in 2017. This was the best decision I’ve taken as it had a major impact on my mental and physical health. I have been practising for more than two years and to me this is something more than jumping around and passing obstacles. I feel it is an art form. I’m more disciplined and focused now and the environment in academy encourages you to get better every day.”