Freediving workshops in Hyderabad introduce the art of diving on a single breath

“You person to beryllium successful the infinitesimal and go 1 with your surroundings, successful this case, the water,” says Shubham Pandey. The Lonavala-based freediver volition behaviour workshops successful Hyderabad from March 13 to 15. Beginners volition larn the mentation and practise breath-hold techniques, on with relaxation, kicking and assemblage posture successful a confined h2o space.

Freediving, inactive an emerging athletics successful India, traces its roots to the single-breath method erstwhile utilized by divers hunting for nutrient oregon pearls. “The Ama — Japanese oversea women — utilized this method to stitchery seafood and pearls,” Shubham explains. Similar practices existed successful different parts of the world.

Unlike scuba diving, which relies connected oxygen tanks, freediving requires divers to clasp their breath. It demands calm, absorption and gradual grooming of lung capableness to enactment underwater connected a azygous breath.

Shubham began his vocation 11 years agone arsenic a commercialized diver for industries, inspecting pipelines, carrying retired underwater welding and handling different attraction work. He aboriginal explored recreational scuba diving and discovered freediving portion successful the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. A certified teacher with Professional Association of Diving Instructors and Scuba Schools International, helium present conducts freediving workshops successful Mumbai, Bengaluru, Kerala and Goa, arsenic good arsenic successful Indonesia, Mauritius, the Maldives, the Philippines and Thailand.

“My begetter was successful the Navy. I’ve seen divers since puerility and ever aspired to beryllium one,” helium recalls. Though helium pursued a Bachelor’s grade successful electronics, the thought of a regular table occupation did not entreaty to him. “The lone enactment I knew past was commercialized diving.” Later, portion moving arsenic a dive maestro successful the Andamans, helium discovered freediving — a displacement that opened caller possibilities.

“Scuba diving is simply a batch of fun, but freediving demands acold much absorption and discipline. You cannot enactment the erstwhile nighttime and freedive the adjacent morning,” helium says.

Nearly 70% of Shubham’s students are women. “I deliberation women bask challenges,” helium says. Some of his pistillate students person shared that, with practice, freediving has helped them header with PTSD (post-traumatic accent disorder). “The breathwork requires an inward journey. It becomes meditative and tin assistance flooded fearfulness and anxiety. When you spell underwater, the heartbeat slows down and the assemblage begins to prevention oxygen, helping to accommodate to the environment.”

He says participants larn to enactment with gravity, maestro equalisation and go alert of the h2o moving astir them. Shubham founded the freediving institution Unobreath successful 2021 and has since coached radical from varied backgrounds, including swimmers Sajan Prakash and Siva Sridhar, erstwhile firm lawyer and competitory freediver Archana Sankara Narayan, filmmaker Homi Adajania, cinematographer Jay Oza and manner decorator Gaurav Gupta.

Shubham himself tin dive to a extent of 60 metres and clasp his enactment for 5 minutes. “On land, we respond alternatively than observe,” helium says. “Freediving teaches america to observe alternatively than react.”

(Shubham Pandey’s freediving workshops volition beryllium held connected March 13, 14 and 15; 10am to 1pm; astatine DD Sports Swimming Pool, Kanchi Gachibowli. To enroll, telephone 7410095842 oregon 69246848. Price: ₹6000 per session)