Sucheta Pal (picture above) used to be an engineer and a self-proclaimed geek before she became “India’s only Zumba education specialist”. t2 caught up with this spirited young woman before she set the stage alight with her infectious energy at Princeton Club during Zumba Fest 2015. 

Are you a Calcutta girl?

Well, my parents live in Calcutta now. I grew up in Ranchi. Mahendra Singh Dhoni was my senior in school. He missed a great opportunity to date me. 

What was Dhoni like in school? 

We always knew him to be great in cricket but he wasn’t good in studies. Teachers used to tell him he would go nowhere in life. I’m sure they’re regretting that now. 

Tell us about how you found your passion for Zumba...

I actually loved studying. I was a geek. I’m an engineer. I worked in TCS Bombay for five years. Then I quit my job and did professional dance training for two years in Mumbai. My parents didn’t know… they thought I was working! In 2009 I shifted to the US to pursue dancing and was searching for new things to do and I found Zumba in Connecticut. I thought it was an African dance at first but then after my first class I discovered it was an amazing fitness form. I trained in the US, taught there for three years and returned to India after being selected as Master Trainer/Zumba Education Specialist by the Zumba Miami office to handle it in India and Southeast Asia. 

How’s Calcutta been so far? 

I think there’s a lot of potential for Zumba in the city. Delhi, Mumbai and Chennai have already grown. Calcutta is also growing and loving Zumba. 
 
Were you always into fitness?

I was always an active child. I was never a gym-goer but I was always into aerobics and dancing, and dancing is cardio workout. When I experienced Zumba for the first time, I started loving fitness. It’s a great mix. You stay active and you inspire people to get active in a fun way. We want people who have never hit the gym and never danced before to come and attend a Zumba class. We’re looking at regular people, office-goers, housewives who are looking to get fit. 

What other dance forms do you know?

I have been trained in jazz, ballet, Bharatanatyam — like all Bengali girls — contemporary, Bollywood and salsa. I started dancing when I was three, watching Aamir Khan sing Papa kehte hain. But I started taking Bharatanatyam classes at the age of five.
 
Do you follow a specific diet?

I do, and I think 99 per cent of your body is made in the kitchen. But I don’t believe in starving. You should have six small meals every day and make sure breakfast is heavy. I take 1-2 scoops of whey protein every day after my workout. I eat very healthy. I cheat once a week. I just ate an egg roll but I’m going to work it off. Don’t skip anything. Eat protein, carbs, fats, everything! Your body needs it all. But you need to eat carefully as well as exercise for a toned body. You can’t go for a Zumba class and then head to KFC after that!
 
It seems you have a thing for interesting hair colour.

(Laughs) It’s been red for a year now but very often it’s gold. 

Ramona Sen
Pictures: Kousik Saha

 

Zumba at a glance 

 

•  When principles of various Latino dance forms like salsa, merengue, cumbia and reggaeton are combined to create a dance workout, it is Zumba. But it needn’t be just Latino. Bollywood is very much part of Zumba in India. 

 

•  Actors who are very active in Zumba Fitness are Nargis Fakhri and Neha Dhupia, says Sucheta, who teaches them. “Ashmit Patel also. They’re all amazing and very down to earth,” she adds.

 

•  You can burn up to 1,000 calories in a Zumba class. And yes, you can get  washboard abs too. “The format of the class is so brilliant that you have high intensity followed by low intensity. The low-intensity rhythms focus on the core muscles,” says Sucheta. 

 

• People think Zumba is not macho enough but that’s a myth; it was started by a man — Beto Perez.

 

 

LEARN ZUMBA AT 
 
Dance Factory 

The institute has branches in Salt Lake, Santoshpur and Prince Anwar Shah Road. Timings differ. Check out dancefactorykolkata.com for details. 

Fees: Registration fee is Rs 800. Class fee is Rs 1,000 for 8 classes. 

Amit and Dorothy Shaw 

The couple who started making everyone Zumba in Calcutta in 2011 now hold classes at Dew Drops on Elgin Road, Rush Fitness (Gariahat and Alipore), Avani Riverside Mall and The Calcutta Swimming Club. Timings differ. Check out amitshaw.zumba.com for details. 

Fees: Rs 2,000 for 8 classes and Rs 3,000 for 12 classes. At Avani, the fees are Rs 1,600 for 8 classes.

Flash Fitness

The fitness centre run by husband-wife duo Behnaz and Vijay Dugar offers classes at its Camac Street studio and at a few social clubs — Ordnance Club, The Saturday Club and CC&FC. Check out flashfitness.in for details. 

 

Only mad dogs and Englishmen go out in the midday sun? Not anymore. Amit and Dorothy Shaw and around 20 Aqua Zumba enthusiasts of The Calcutta Swimming Club were also out in the midday sun on May 3, working off their breakfasts in the swimming pool. “Zumba fitness per day keeps the doctor away,” was Amit’s slogan, as he moved to Chammak chalo and I Gotta Feeling. After all, it was one big party in the pool! “We have one of the best pools and what’s better than being able to exercise in the water?” added Ketan Shanghavi, club president. Pictures: Anindya Shankar Ray