Of star bodies and cheat meals

A conversation with Bollywood's well-known fitness trainer, a Delhi boy who has made his mark as a gym trainer, working with celebrities such as Neetu Kapoor and Sonu Sood

- DIKSHA SINHA

E didn't choose fitness—it chose him. Yogesh Bhateja is the man who trains the who's who of B-town. From Sonu Sood, Kangana Ranaut, Tamannaah Bhatia to Farah Khan and Neetu Kapoor, Bhateja is the force behind these sculpted physiques.

Bhateja's journey began in 2007, far from the glittering sets of Bollywood. He started off with managing the gym at NIFT, Hauz Khas. Then moved on to Fitness First in Connaught Place and Gold's Gym. Then came a call that changed everything. In 2013, a friend in Mumbai invited him to manage a gym there. "I wanted to be around driven people. I knew these actors were in a race, and I wanted to be a part of it," he says the excitement still palpable in his voice recalling the decision he took years back.

Sonu Sood was his first client. The actor was filming R...Rajkumar and Happy New Year at that time. The trainer asked for 15 days to prove himself, saying, "I saw potential in him—real potential." The transformation was so powerful that gradually the gate of Bollywood opened for him.

Price of stardom