I had discovered something; there was a pleasure in becoming something new. You could will yourself into a fresh shape. Now all i had to do was figure out how to do it out there, in my life
– Claire Dederer, Poser; My Life In Twenty Three Yoga Poses

I have always been reasonably fit and active but yoga isn’t something that I did regularly until about a year and a half ago. I eat pretty clean, look after myself and workout regularly but I’m unable to slow down. I find my mind racing trying to find answers to situations I can no longer control and for all of us type A’s – this brings a lot of irritability. I woke up one morning on a work trip in Kerala and decided to put an end to this by inculcating a daily mindfulness and yoga practice. I was pretty regular in the beginning and noticed how beautiful my life was without all this nervous energy and fear of the future. I can safely say that yoga has changed my outlook on life and picked me up when I needed help. I knew I could come home, settle onto my mat and be able to quiet my mind. After dabbling in Hatha, Ashtanga and reviewing various yoga retreats in India and overseas- I had the opportunity to review the Yoga Chakra.

Yoga chakra started in 2013 with a vision to bring health and happiness into everyone’s life. Manisha Kohli and Kavita Das have founded The Yoga Chakra and curated a safe space for people to come in and work on their practice. They have two studios in Greater Kailash and conduct classes daily on the aerial silks as well as vinyasa classes.

 

 

Aerial silks or Aerial Yoga is relatively new in Delhi where only a few studios have the infrastructure for silks, trapeze and hammocks. The Yoga Chakra offers aerial yoga classes in Gk 2. I walked in on a Sunday morning for my first class with The Yoga Chakra. Manisha and Kavita were there at the studio when I arrived. The space was large, spacious and had a lot of bright coloured silks hanging from the ceiling. I had attempted this before in Bombay and the Maldives but I wasn’t sure my body was primed for this today. We did some dynamic stretches to warm up and started to climb the silk. I felt arboreal and getting to the top was harder than I expected because it requires upper body strength, balance and footwork. The silk would be too slippery and luckily for me- I had cushioning at the bottom to protect me if I fell. Aerial requires a lot of core stability, upper body strength, balance and coordination but Manisha and Kavita made it look effortless and easy. We started working our way to holds and inversions where holding onto the silk and trusting the process was extremely crucial. I learnt that day that the silk is your friend and you have to hold onto it and trust it. I also learnt that being suspended from mid air is by far the scariest and most exhilarating feeling I can recall. There’s something so effortless, playful and beautiful in letting go and the silks can teach you a lesson or two on life.

The class ended before we even realised but my muscles especially my upper back, shoulders and arms started to feel the soreness. I walked out rosy cheeked and feeling a tad lightheaded but pretty ecstatic from all those inversions. It was a beautiful feeling and I sat down to have a talk with Manisha and Kavita about why they began. They showed me their merchandise that included coasters, mousepads, t-shirts and cups available at both studios. They also plan to introduce TRX classes towards the end of the month. For the yoga enthusiast who wants to learn further- you could always sign up for one of their 200 RYT programmes in affiliation with Yoga Alliance.

We enjoyed ourselves so much at Aerial that we decided to book a Vinyasa class on Monday evening. My sister and I went in for the evening class conducted by Sonal. The studio is warm, cheerful despite being in a basement and has great vibes. We started with some gentle stretches and breathing exercises (anulom vilom and kapalbhati). Sonal then instructed us to take rounds of the studio to get our heart rate up before we started with our sun salutations. I was doing the vinyasa class the day after aerial so I was in a considerable amount of pain because my upper body was really sore. Sonal was very attentive and patient and made sure she helped me really stretch out my hamstrings, calves,shoulders and arms so as to bring some relief. I was sweating halfway through the surya namaskars. When we finished, we worked on some seated postures and standing postures for balance, coordination and improved flexibility. The class finished with some core work and gentle stretches and humming that almost lulled me to sleep.

About the founders-
Kavita with her background in dance and creative choreography is a trained yoga instructor with the Yoga Alliance. She started her journey with yoga in 2009 and never looked back since.Kavita has always felt as a teacher that she will be true to her students and herself and always share what is flowing through her with them. What flows naturally and authentically through Kavita is FlowYoga. Yoga has made Kavita want to share it and help others discover their own path to happiness and health.

Manisha, being a fashion and product designer, is also a trained and specialist in yoga with the Yoga Alliance. Being a designer, she brings in a blend of functional and creative edge to her classes. Her overall goal in teaching is to be a “light-bringer” – providing people with the tools, environment, and subtle guidance they need to make their own connections.

Verdict- the instructors are wonderful and its a perfect little sanctuary of peace in otherwise crowded GK. People suffering from chronic hypertension, diabetes, heart disease and pregnant women should avoid Aerial but the rest of you should definitely give it a shot. Aerial gives you a chance to trust the silks and trust the process while being playful and mindful all at once. It also teaches you that the fear is your only deterrent and once you’ve faced your fear you could literally fly and glide around the room. I also highly recommend the morning and evening vinyasa classes that start with pranayama and end with some mindfulness and humming. I feel more at ease and find myself sleeping better and cant recommend this enough. Do it regularly and your body will thank you. I wanted to end with a beautiful quote that sums up why I do yoga-

These days, my practice is teaching me to embrace imperfection: to have compassion for all the ways things haven’t turned out as I planned, in my body and in my life – for the ways things keep falling apart, and failing, and breaking down. It’s less about fixing things, and more about learning to be present for exactly what is- Anne Cushman

 

 

Quick Notes-

The Yoga Chakra
https://www.facebook.com/theyogachakra/timeline
First Vinyasa class is free, the drop ins are 700.
Aerial classes are 1200 per session.

Studio 1:
D-18
Basement
Pamposh Enclave
Opposite Sukhda Hospital
Greater Kailash Part 1

Studio 2:
E-297
Lower Ground floor
on the M block Market Road
opposite wealthy fisher School
Greater Kailash Part 2

Call Manisha to book your class today #9873143702