From boardrooms to gymnasiums and open grounds, corporate India?s head honchos are flexing their muscles to race in the Standard Chartered Mumbai Marathon. Come January 18, the usually formally dressed men and women in the corridors of India Inc will come out in singlets, shorts, track suits, and run, sweating for a charitable cause.
Some corporate runners are veterans in this sport. Like Samir Bhatia, MD India & Indian Ocean, Barclays Global Retail and Commercial Bank. ?I have been participating in the Mumbai marathon ever since its inaugural year. The experience was, and continues to be exhilarating? you just can?t get enough of it!? He adds, ?It fulfils my passion for running; staying fit in a fun-filled way; and expressing my solidarity with like-minded citizens who come together to support a cause or a set of causes that are dear to our hearts?.
Others are taking professional help. RPG Enterprises, which has two teams of 60 members each participating in the marathon, is being coached by a professional marathon runner, Tushar Bhagwan Bhagwe. A co-worker, he has run 18-20 full marathon. Says Bhagwe, ?We are here in it for the joy of participating.? The team practices for an hour every day, depending on their shifts.? Talking about their diet, Bhagwe says, ?Nothing special. Simple nutritious food is fine for us. It’s a diet of regular dal, roti, vegetable and rice.?
There are first-timers like Peggy Johnson, executive V-P of the Americas and India, Qualcomm. ?I visited our office in Mumbai, India in 2008 just after they had completed the race. I told them I would run with them in 2009.? However, she is not new to marathons, having run several full and half marathons in the US, Ireland and England. How was the experience? ?It?s a bit daunting at the start of the race to think about the miles ahead, but the feeling when you finally cross the finishing line is always overwhelmingly positive.? She adds, ?For the Mumbai marathon I was already running about 10-15 miles per week, and in the Fall of 2008 I began to increase not only the number of times I ran per week, but also my distance per run.?
It is running for a cause that charges up Nariman Bacha, a senior manage at Godrej & Boyce Mfg. Co. Ltd. He is running with 30 colleagues to support a charity?ALERT India. This year Bacha is running his second marathon. When he ran the Mumbai marathon last year, it set his passion aflame to see the tarmac disappear behind him as he pounded it. ?It was a unique and cherishing experience,? he says nostalgically. He has altered his diet and made it high on carbs, protein and low on fats. ?Running has taught the team to stay focused and push limits. If nothing else, it gives us 45 minutes of music and fitness every day!?
Nayan Marphatia, area financial controller, South Asia Region, DHL Express, India, has a passion for running and has been keeping the pace steady for over 10 years now. A veteran of the Mumbai and Delhi marathons, he has been one of the foremost half marathon runners in the DHL contingent. ?For me it?s not a matter of time or about winning, it gives me a tangible goal to focus on. Crossing the finishing line in itself is an achievement unlike any other.?
Participation doesn?t come cheap, though. Dilip Jairam, COO, Procam International, says that each corporate team pays Rs 2.34 lakh for participation. Out of it, Rs 9,000 goes towards the registration fee. The remaining money goes to the charity that the company is supporting from among the registered charities listed at the marathon. Procam is the organiser and Standard Chartered Bank is the main sponsor.
Jairam adds that there are spin off benefits for corporates. ?A lot of HR initiatives can be undertaken by companies through the marathon. For instance, a corporate can assess team work, evaluate leadership qualities and succession programmes. Some use it for appraisals, too.?