Parkour craze

The relatively lesser-known physical discipline of French origin, parkour, involves moving from one point to another, efficiently and quickly, using the reflexes and agility of the human body. Films make this urban adventure sport a rage among youngsters, writes Nikhil Agarwal

Hrithik Roshan used the parkour techniques in Krrish

Hrithik Roshan used it in Krrish, Akshay Kumar used it in Singh is Kinng, and even Bond movie Casino Royale had it. That’s the art of parkour, an urban adventure sport that empowers the nimble action hero to take down the bad guys by leaping from building to building, sliding down handrails, scaling walls effortlessly and dropping down from great heights.

The relatively lesser-known physical discipline of French origin involves moving from one point to another as efficiently and quickly as possible, using the reflexes and agility of the human body.

Besides a popular Thums up commercial on TV, Akshay Kumar, known as the action guru of Bollywood, mastered the breathtaking jumps in films like Chandni Chowk to China and Singh is Kinng.

A martial arts trainer himself, Akshay took formal training for the purpose and is also reported to have built a parkour gym in his Mumbai home.

In Prince, which redefined the genre of action films in the industry, actor Vivek Oberoi also joined the parkour bandwagon.

"I am an adrenaline junkie and love doing my own stunts. I enjoy overcoming the stunts that appear impossible. I had to go through specific disciplines of training for five months to achieve the sophisticated action sequences with precision," says Oberoi.

Heartthrob Imran Khan, who prepared for his 2008 film Kidnap by practising seven-hour parkour sessions with the help of a British expert, says that it is already a rage in the film industry.

"Parkour has become very cool in Bollywood now, but the fact is that it has been in practise since many years by foreign actors like Jackie Chan," Khan says.

With some racy parkour sequences, Hollywood films like Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, The Incredible Hulk and Mission: Impossible III took the sport to another level.

Rapper IshQ Bector, who is also a trained gymnast, says he learnt it in his Canada hometown, where he started doing it only for fun.

"When I came to India, I loved jumping the rooftops. Even now when I am on a balcony or terrace, I always visualise myself climbing and jumping down, no matter what the height," gushes IshQ.

Call it a sport, art, hobby, lifestyle or simply passion, but after being glamourised by Bollywood actors, parkour is now waiting to burst into popular consciousness in India.

The physical discipline, which was formally established less than two decades ago, is spreading like wild fire in metros like Delhi, Mumbai and Chennai as online video tutorials have come to the rescue of young enthusiasts, who miss the guidance of professional trainers.

A Mumbai-based youth, nicknamed NOS in the circles, who claims to be the only professional parkour trainer in the country, however, cautions that the ‘art of movement’ cannot be learnt online. — PTI