We meet him when he’s in town every year for Pinkathon — ‘India’s biggest women’s run’ that he organises — and he looks as youthful as ever at 52. Not a shade out of place next to his 27-year-old girlfriend Ankita Konwar. We ask the secret behind this easy relationship and Milind Soman slips into a no-holds-barred chat, at Radisson Kolkata Ballygunge.

Excerpts...

How is life in your 50s? You are unconventional in so many ways…

I think it’s the same as it was in my 20s. At my whim! (Smiles) Whatever I want to do! (Grins) I love to explore opportunities. I’ve found that opportunities come to everyone. Like for example, the Pinkathon in Calcutta is an opportunity. So, either you do wake up at 5 o’clock and take that opportunity or you don’t, but the opportunity is here.
I started running in 2003. I used to hate running and would think it is monotonous and boring. When marathon came to Mumbai in the 2000s, I thought this was an opportunity. I never thought there would be a big running event in the city, but here it is and I have to do it.

I have seven-eight companies that I am involved with and they are all dealing with areas of interest that I have and the reason they are businesses is because I wanted to make my interests sustainable.

Movies… not that it is a career for me. Somebody asked me to do a film, I did a film. And then I did some more films, even modelling. I did not even know that it was a profession. Even swimming. I met somebody who said, ‘Oh! You swim really well… why don’t you compete?’ And I did. So, every opportunity that I have taken and explored has led me or guided me into this space that I am today, where I can just explore anything I want. Even if opportunity is not there, I can create that opportunity.

I have been doing events for more than 30 years now. My first company that I started in 1989 was an events company, just to create new experiences. That is something I really enjoy… even the Pinkathons because there was no other women’s event. I was able to create a women’s event, rather than just say that women should run, because I had the infrastructure ready, I had the business and I had the backing.

Living your life on your whim cannot be that easy!

It’s very easy. It’s the easiest. We think it is not easy. Everybody is always very excited about the ideas that I have.

You are lucky…

Yeah! Of course I am lucky. But it’s always been like that. I think the people around me are used to it. It’s not that suddenly I have got up and I said that I am going to change my life. Then people object. It’s part of me to do new things all the time. Turning 50, therefore, was an opportunity to learn something new. I was looking for something fun to do to commemorate the 50th year and it turned out to be Ironman.

How do you condition yourself?

I turn my Internet off at 9pm. That’s been my New Year resolution and I try and get seven hours of sleep every night, which has worked quite well. But otherwise it’s a constant struggle.

Even for you?!

Even for me, of course! The temptations and opportunities again are limitless. The CEO of Netflix (Reed Hastings) said our only competition is sleep. Imagine! For a business, the only competition is sleep because people only watch it at night and they are losing sleep. It’s a choice you have to make. I have the same opportunities and choices that everybody else has, may be more because I am in a position where I have access to more opportunities. It’s even more difficult for me to make the choice. The more successful you are in terms of money or fame or popularity, the more options you have, the more difficult it is. People don’t realise that. The less successful you are, the less money you make, the less popular you are, the less opportunities you might have but they might be more meaningful opportunities and you can therefore choose quite easily between them. It is easy to choose between right and wrong when you already know this is right. But when you have 20 opportunities, it’s a like buffet... what will I eat... I don’t know! Let me try eating everything and you are still not satisfied. You keep thinking I should have done this also and could have done that as well and sometimes you end up making the wrong choice.

You hit the bed...

I sleep by 11 and get up at 5-6am... I don’t run very early. Most runners run at about 4.30-5am.... After 5.30am, people think it is late to run, but I never run before 7 o’clock.

Is it more difficult to lead the life you live especially if you are from the glamour industry?

See firstly glamour is a perception. I don’t feel glamorous. You think I am glamorous or I might think Brigitte Bardot is glamorous.

You are not glamorous?!

What is glamour? I feel happy. Is happiness glamour? I feel appreciated but the adulation is because they see something that I cannot see... unless you have a specific talent that is so amazing... but people with specific talent rarely get that adulation. For example, Naseeruddin Shah as an actor... he is amazing, but he is not going to get the adulation that a big star gets. That’s not it. Then, what is it? We don’t know.
So, I feel content and satisfied when I get to do what I want.

Do you have a lot of friends from the industry?

No, none! I just work. I don’t even watch movies.

So, your friends are...

I have two or three friends.... One I met through films, one I met through events and one I met through modelling. These three I interact with often, otherwise everyone is my friend. We are in the era of Facebook. I have about half a million followers.

What did you make of the hoopla surrounding you and Ankita? Were you surprised?

Not at all! I know people. Some people are like that. It doesn’t bother me at all. I have had too much experience to let something like that bother me. We’ve been with each other now four years, but nobody knew till last year. So, when she got on to social media in a bigger way and started posting pictures... I told her that the moment you start posting pictures, people are going to notice and you might get some attention. I didn’t know this kind of attention.... It blew up because of the age gap... which is also fine.... My last girlfriend Shahana (Goswami) was 21 years younger than me. People didn’t care that much... may be the Internet is bigger today.... Otherwise I have had relationships like this before. Even when I got married, my wife (Mylene Jampanoi) was 18 years younger than me. 

You were trolled heavily...

I don’t care! People have called me lots of things in 35 years. They think it is unusual and they have to react in some way. A lot of people, who have found it unusual, have reacted positively.

How did you meet Ankita?

I met her in a nightclub in Chennai. I never go to nightclubs. It was a rare occurrence that I was there... this was quite coincidental or meant to be. I was dancing with someone else and suddenly I saw her and I was like, ‘Oh my god! Who is that?!’ I gave her my number and I said if she wanted she could call me and then she called me the next day and we started seeing each other... 2014 February.

She was working in AirAsia at that time. She has just resigned, because she is moving to Bombay and AirAsia doesn’t have a base in Bombay.

What are the common interests?

She is human! (Laughs out loud) There are a lot of differences. There is a generation gap. She is Assamese and I am Maharashtrian.

Also, how she looks at life and you look at life?

Is kind of similar. Those things also have not mattered to me ever. It’s just that if you like being with someone... for me that’s enough. I have also dated women from other communities and parts of the country before and I have had fairly long-term relationships. They’ve all worked very well... then your dreams change or you change your city... then it doesn’t last. In fact I am in touch with everyone! From the age of 14! They are all friends of mine. They are all married and they have children. They keep in touch.

What’s the trick?

There’s a trick?! I am just a nice guy! (Laughs)

So, no bitterness with anyone?

None. Maybe a couple, but that’ll get sorted out! It keeps coming and going.

Did Ankita take to fitness after meeting you?

After she met me… she started running a couple of years ago and now she runs very regularly. She runs the half marathon. Just last week she ran 150km between Vizag and Hyderabad. She is getting more and more interested in her own health, the food that she eats, lifestyle.

Have there been talks of marriage? 

We are talking. Probably this year!

What would be your one relationship pointer?

Give each other space. Let everybody live by their own rules.

Only then things will last?

I don’t know whether it’ll last. I have always lived like this and lots of things have not lasted but if you want to have a good relationship as long as it’s going to last, then you give each other space for your own and their dreams.

What is this secret of detachment?

I don’t know, but I’ve always had it. I like being in the moment. I am addicted to the moment, maybe!

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Watching on Netflix: Grimm. I started watching Netflix just last month. My mother introduced me. She will be 80 this year. She just travels whenever she wants and treks. She runs and walks up to 10km... in about one hour 20 minutes. I have taught her how to do push-ups... she can do 15. She does a two-minute plank.

Music: I never listen to music. People make me think it’s weird. I like Elvis Presley.

Books: Sapiens is a really good book that I have read recently. Also, I read the whole series of Game of Thrones in 2012!

Last film I watched: I watch some English films, mostly Marvel... Black Panther. 

You make it a point to be there at all the Pinkathons…

I have to because the team insists. They feel it cannot be done without me. I have told them, you can do it… I don’t need to be there. So now, I go just once on the stage in the morning and I talk to the women who have gathered and after that I do not go on stage at all. I do all the flag-offs of course. I just want them to get more confident. 

What Milind Soman wants you to do!

Click on pinkathon.in/kolkata to register for Pinkathon, in association with The Telegraph. The last date to register online is March 29. Get your running shoes ready for the morning of April 1. You can take part in 3km, 5km and 10km races that starts at the University of Calcutta ground, Maidan. Be there!