Ankita Paul strikes a pose. Picture by Srinivas

Jamshedpur, Aug. 17: At two-and-a-half-years of age, Ankita Paul is a celebrity in her own right, at least in her locality.

This tiny tot has a number of yoga postures on her fingertips. From pranayam, mayurasana to shirshashana young Ankita has left her neighbours, who drop in every now and then at her residence in suburban Harharguttu, awestruck.

What?s more, Ankita, the daughter of Achinto and Chaitali Paul, learnt the ropes of yoga on her own after growing a keen interest in the art about only eight months ago.

?It took her some weeks to excel in various postures,? said Paul, a former employee of Tata Steel, who also added that Ankita?s interest in yoga grew by watching him perform every evening.

?Actually, I am a diabetic and have been advised to do yoga. It is my daily routine for some months now. Ankita used to wake up every morning to watch me do yoga,? Paul added.

The infant knows over 15 postures of yoga, including mandukashan, anulambh-vilambh, udyant, bhambri, kapal bhantivajrasan et all. Like her father, she is also a big fan of Baba Ramdev, the noted yoga exponent.

Ankita felt shy when asked to display one of her postures. It took her parents more than 15 minutes to persuade her to perform one of the asanas. She displayed the pranayam and bhambri to perfection.

?I love doing yoga,? she mumbled before hiding behind her mother. ?She wakes up even before us. She does yoga on her own,? added Chaitali, the beaming mother.

Chaitali also pointed out that Ankita?s health has improved ever since she started yoga. ?Earlier, I used to run behind her to make her eat. But it is not the case now. She eats on time and her health has also improved a lot,? she said.

Residents of Harharguttu seemed amazed at Ankita?s prowess. ?The girl has a natural ability that is difficult to emulate. I am really surprised,? said Santosh Kujur.

?Earlier, I was not very convinced when people talked about her excellence in yoga. But my opinion changed when I myself watched her performing,? added Basant Kumar, a resident.

Excellence in yoga notwithstanding, Ankita also rattles up English and Hindi alphabets and numbers with ease. ?She has a sharp memory. We have planned to admit her to a good English-medium school. We think she has the qualities of a meritorious student,? said Chaitali.