March 26: Pink was the colour of the morning and Milind Soman the Pied Piper who had 4,000-odd women raring for their first Pinkathon - an "overwhelming" Calcutta debut of the race for women's empowerment that has travelled seven cities.
Pinkathon, in association with The Telegraph, was 32-year-old Itishree Swain's first race since she finished school. She was at the Calcutta Rangers Club ground on the Maidan before the first light of dawn today, swaying to the beats of the pre-race zumba with hundreds of others - from kids to mommies, young professionals to retired septuagenarians.
A few hours later, drained of energy but exultant at having completed the 10K in one hour and 35 minutes, the New Town resident said she could not have spent a Sunday morning in a more fulfilling manner. "The thought of being part of something like this gave me strength along the way," Itishree said.
Co-founded by model-actor-activist Milind, Pinkathon is "India's Biggest Women's Run" and is meant to get more women to adopt a fitter lifestyle for themselves and their families and raise awareness about health challenges like breast cancer.
Lawyer Deblina Ghoshal, 33, came to the ground with her two-and-a-half-year-old son Rayaan in a baby carrier strapped to her back. "I had been waiting for Pinkathon to come to my city. I ran 3km and it was not easy. But I thoroughly enjoyed myself," she said.
For the majority of the women, Milind's chiselled presence was as much a draw as the cause. A chorus of "ooohs" rippled across the ground as he joined the Zumba training session and egged on the participants. "We had not expected such enthusiasm in Calcutta because there is a perception that people here are a little laidback. But apparently not.... We had made arrangements for about 2,000 participants, but double the number signed up by last week and we had to close registrations. The response has been overwhelming," Milind, 51, told Metro.
Every participant received a "medical tag" for a free mammogram (44 years or above) and a gynaecological consultation (below 44 years) at Apollo Gleneagles Hospitals. Milind said the runners could gift the tags if they wished to help someone without the means to go for a check-up.
A show of hands before the start of the race had revealed that almost 70 per cent of the field were first-time runners. By the end of the event, many had made up their minds to run more road races.
"I play golf but this is the first time I took part in an event where so many people participated. I felt wonderful when complete strangers egged me on," said Nikita Biswas, a student of Class VIII at Calcutta International School.
Nikita was inspired to run by her mother Aditi, who also joined the city's inaugural Pinkathon.
Among the participants were the four Halfhide sisters: Caroline, Stephanie, Susan and Annie, who ran along with their mother Karen. Roselind Aind from Nagaland, who works with Accenture, said participating in Pinkathon was "the best thing" she had done since coming to work in Calcutta.
Besides the challenge of completing the race in their chosen categories - the 21K, 10K, Mia by Tanishq 5km and the VWash Plus 3km - many of the participants went through 20 push-ups each for a selfie with Milind. For those who could not, Milind had put a different price on each click: 40 sit-ups.
Not all Pinkathon participants were privileged. NGOs supporting the event brought girl children and their mothers to the race. "Our volunteers brought their kids along as well and everyone ran together," said Anubhuti Prakash, headmistress of Madurdaha Satyavriti Vidyalaya and joint secretary of the NGO Dakshini Prayash, which runs the school near Anandapur.
A team of 21 visually impaired girl children from two schools, Voice of World and Calcutta Blind School, ran the race with a guide each.
Businessman Rahul Gupta played guide for Bhagwati Modi, a 13-year-old with 85 per cent visual impairment. "I felt wonderful running with Bhagwati. I will never win a marathon but this is the closest feeling to winning," he smiled.
