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What is the importance of being fit and healthy in your life?
Firstly, professionally it is required of me that I am looking good physically, to be looking fit. But besides that personally I think it’s important to be able to enjoy life. To be able to do the kind of things you want to do. Whether it’s adventure sports or whatever it may be you have to be fit enough. Plus, you have a kid and you’ve gotta be able to play with him. You should be high energy; you feel good about yourself if you are high energy.
Was your army background, and then your golfer husband, part of the motivation to stay fit?
Definitely! All our life my father used to wake up really early and it was like you have to do something in the morning. If you were in bed after 7am he was like, ‘Oh half the day is lost!’. (Laughs) So he was very strict about that. Go out for a jog, play a sport, do anything, sit up, just sit up! (Laughs) It was so drilled in you know that you look for a similar kind of a pattern sub-consciously. Jyoti’s (Randhawa) also got an army background and he was into sports and adventure. And now my brother (Digvijay Singh) is also a golfer. So everybody is into sports, adventure sports, fitness and everything. We often discuss our exercises if someone finds something new.
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| ■ On a scale of 1 to 10, how would you rate yourself? ■ A compliment you get all-the time… ■ A male counterpart of Chitrangda Singh on screen would be... ■ Your wake-me-up drink? ■ You snack on... ■ Your comfort food… ■ Your mum makes it best... ■ You avoid eating... ■ You avoid drinking… ■ A thing you can do now you couldn’t 10 years ago... ■ You want to be remembered as… |
So which was the toughest adventure sport you ever tried?
Sky diving. I did sky dive thrice and I thought it’s very tough every single time. But I went back up again to jump off that plane by myself. Now the next thing I want to do is hang on to that wing and then let my hands drop. That’s what these guys (Jyoti does it) are doing nowadays. If I do that I will think I am the bravest woman.
What’s your favourite way of staying fit?
What I enjoy doing is yoga. If I can get my yoga trainer and he can take me through a really gruelling one-hour yoga it would be fantastic. He does his own combinations with normal yoga, there is pilates in it, yogalates, sometimes I have to hold every asana for 40 seconds to one minute so it becomes power yoga. It has to be combined with cardio and strength and all of that, which is really important otherwise. On an average I hit the gym about four times a week for an hour-and-a-half including all the stretching and breathing, all of that.
And do you play golf with Jyoti?
I don’t play golf but I practise golf. So if Jyoti is practising I would also go and hit some balls. Hang around at the range and do some shotgun or bunker or something like that. But I don’t play a round of golf.
Is breakfast your most critical meal of the day?
I cannot function without breakfast. Because dinner is usually light protein or something, I never have a very heavy dinner. So at breakfast I am like famished. I wake up so hungry that I have to eat. I have soaked almonds and fruits in the morning as the first course. After about an hour-and-a-half or two hours I have any form of egg. Like an egg-white scramble or an omelette. My personal favourite is an omelette sandwich or cheese omelette sandwich and cold coffee. I love milk so I have at least two glasses of cold coffee a day.
Do you believe we are what we eat? What’s your daily diet like?
Yes of course I do and I try to make a couple of right choices. Ideally I try and have fish as much as possible though we are not much of fish-eaters. But we do eat it once a week and that too grilled and minced or something. Another must would be chicken, at least thrice a week, and mutton maybe once a week. I personally quite enjoy vegetarian food. There was a while in the middle that I went off non-veg and was quite enjoying the experience. Even now I am not craving for non-veg the way I would earlier. I have my dal and sabzi and I love rajma-chawal, curry-chawal... I have consciously tried to move away from white rice. I am having brown rice and actually enjoying it.
What’s your indulgence eat?
I love shakkar pare, it is my favourite after-meal dessert. I love it. That happens not very often because it has a lot of ghee and sugar but I like to have them off and on. It’s not like I completely binge but I would sometimes have a gulab jamun or a rasgulla. I love Bengali mithai, that is my problem. When cham cham and stuff starts coming around Diwali...!
Three tips to healthy eating from Chitrangda the mom?
I keep the colas out of the house as much as I can. There are no chips in the house. Popcorn is good, it’s high on calcium, that my son (Zoravar, three-and-a-half) can have whenever. That too I try to avoid the microwave and do the pressure cooker kind of a thing.
Do you cook?
I don’t cook much but I can make a couple of dips and spreads. I can put something together. I am ok with pastas and salads actually.
Something that you detested eating as a child and now you eat it because it’s healthy....
I used to have the cod liver oil capsules every now and then. I hated it then but now I am having salmon omega, which is not that bad.
You advertise for Aliva crackers, a healthy snack. Was it a conscious decision?
When they came to me they thought that I am somebody with a sporting background and into a healthy lifestyle and all of that. So then they explained to me how Aliva is baked and wholemeal and very low in saturated fat, low on sodium, it sounded great. Instead of having chips and stuff like that it’s better to have this. It tasted fantastic! I thought the ad is also very interesting. You know the kind of jokes and paradoxes are not very obvious, she is soft, she is naughty and she has a sense of humour, which is mild but sweet. She is an actual Indian woman and I could relate to it.
What’s your signature style?
I am really casual, jeans-tee shirt or jeans-muslin shirt everyday kind of a girl. If I could I would love to be in sneakers as well but now I have to be in heels so I am fine with that. Fitted, very structured dresses that follow the curves look really good on me. Also things that are off-shoulder because I feel a little bit of shoulders and arm is very sexy. I am not very keen on something that is too bling or overtly sexual. I don’t think I can carry that off very well.
A designer you dig?
I am wearing a lot of Tarun Tahiliani now; they are beautiful Indian and Indo-Western kind of fusion dresses. Very feminine, I love his work. Falguni & Shane Peacock are another favourite of mine — very structured and very high fashion so it suits me. Shantanu & Nikhil are also very nice.
Where lies your sex appeal?
A lot of people say I am mysterious in some ways and that’s my appeal. Some say it’s the eyes, some say it’s not on the face but it is in the head. I hear opinions of people of me.
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| Jyoti Randhawa at Tollygunge Club on Tuesday. Picture by Bishwarup Dutta |
Jyoti Randhawa was teeing off at Tollygunge Club for the Aircel Professional Golf Tour of India (PGTI) Players Championship when t2 caught up...
Why did you take up golf when you could have been a swimmer or a shooter?
I think it just happened because my dad used to play a lot of golf and I used to go play golf with him. I did shooting, swimming and I never really wanted to be a golfer but.... Also my cousins Bambi and Bunty used to play a lot of golf and I thought it was a great life, travelling and seeing the world. So I bought a golf set and it just happened. I never planned to be a golfer. It just happened.
First memories of holding a golf club?
I remember it was in Ambala, my dad took me to a golf course, I was in the second standard way back in 1978. He showed me what a golf club looks like and that’s when I took my first shot. I remember that.
Your maiden golf tourney in Calcutta?
In fact, my first golf tournament ever in my life was at Tollygunge Club. I was 13 or 14 then.... I was feeling very nostalgic about it today and talking about it all day.
Has Calcutta lost out as a golfing destination? Does it need to play catch up now?
Ya, I think so. They haven’t developed new courses and there are only these two courses (RCGC and Tollygunge Club) that you can play on and the army one (at Fort William). So you need to have more golf courses around Calcutta for people to come and play. People have to come in and do good business here. I guess that’s what’s lacking in this city if you compare it to Delhi or Bangalore.... I guess you need to invest some money here.
Your favourite golf course in this city?
Royal Calcutta Golf Club.
When did you last play at Royal?
In 1999, for the Indian Open. I remember Arjun Atwal won that tournament and that’s the last time I came here. And after that the Indian Open never happened here. The last time I played at Tolly was the year before that. I missed Calcutta but got busy with other things, playing abroad and all that.
How has your PGTI been so far?
It’s been great, it has gone from strength to strength. I remember from mainly playing for Rs 2 to 4 crore, we are playing for Rs 10-plus or Rs 12 crore in this span of two-four years. That says a lot about how golf has come up and what PGTI has done for golf.
How has 2010-2011 been for you?
Well, last year wasn’t too great. I struggled a bit with my form. I want to get back in form this year so I am starting slow and playing here and then Avantha Masters 2011 (at DLF Golf and Country Club, New Delhi) next week. I am looking forward to some good showing this year.
Your Tiger Woods experience…
I played a round with Tiger Woods in 2008 in China. It was great fun playing with him. Humble guy that time and he was number one in the world by a long margin. I learnt a lot just watching him, how composed and how controlled he was, and how he was playing. Watching him I learned a few shots so it was as good as him tipping me! We talked a lot about ships and how many yachts he has got and bikes and cars and my bikes and things like that. It was a great experience and not just about golf. He’s a thorough gentleman.
Eight Asian Tour wins and more than 20 professional wins in India. Any memorable moments from the victory stand?
I think in 1998 when I won the Hero Honda Masters it was my first Asian Tour win and till then I was a good golfer but... beating all the guys from America and Australia I was like ‘Oh shit I can also be like all those guys and I can win tournaments’. That’s when I went on and won a lot of tournaments. It kind of gave me the confidence so I always remember that victory. And then I won the Indian Open (2000), which was also another major step for me. And then I went on to do it three times. I remember those things and those are great memories.
What have 17 years as a golfer taught you?
Patience. You’ve gotta be very patient. I think golf is a great teacher not only as a sport but also on life. I think it’s the game of all games.
Looking ahead…
Right now if I can just put some good scores on the board, play some decent golf, win a few tournaments this year... that would do good.
Any non-golf passion?
Being an army officer’s kid you always have a passion for the outdoors. I have taken that a step forward. I’ve gone into biking and sky diving now, so I jump out of planes, parachute... that’s part of me, that’s something that I always like to do, that’s something that gives me an adrenaline rush. In golf you can get that if you are only in contention… winning the tournament. I love bikes. Right now I just have a 1000cc Yamaha. But no Ducatis because I am hardly home to take care of it.
How did you like (wife) Chitrangda’s Yeh Saali Zindagi?
I went and saw the premiere show. I think it is a good movie. But I personally think that she could have done much better... But that’s only me because I see her everyday. I think she is a great actress and she has a lot of potential.
How is it being one half of a celeb couple?
We are actually very simple and normal people at home and we like to keep it like that.
Finally, has little Zoravar picked up a golf club yet?
He’s a smart kid. I haven’t really taught him anything as he’s just three-and-a-half. But he’s seen me swing and copied my swing without my telling him anything! I think it would be great if I could be his role model.
