Eyeing Gold: 12-Year-Old Yoga Prodigy Sets Sights On 2030 Asiad And Olympics

Jodhpur: Parineeti Bishnoi is perhaps the country’s youngest Yoga expert. Coming from a moderate household in Bhakrasni village in Luni area of Jodhpur district, she dreams of winning a gold medal for the country whenever Yoga is introduced as a sport in the Asian Games and the Olympics.

The 12-year-old was honoured by the Rajasthan government on Republic Day with a state-level award for her outstanding work in the field of Yoga. Parineeti is already renowned nationwide for her Yoga skills, and now the government has also recognized her hard work by bestowing the prestigious honour upon her.

Returning to Jodhpur after receiving the state-level award, she told ETV Bharat that she has been dedicated to Yoga since the age of five. She said, “Yoga calms the mind. Waking up early in the morning and practicing Yoga is extremely beneficial.”

She learnt the Yoga lessons from her father Ramchandra Bishnoi and over time, she has received praise from all quarters. Her father practices Yoga regularly.

She emerged at the forefront when Yoga was being discussed everywhere during the COVID-19 period. She started displaying her skills online. Everyone was astonished to see a young girl of hardly eight years performing complex Yoga asanas in big camps. She came into the limelight when her video was shared on social media by the country's renowned industrialist Anand Mahindra. Many celebrities, including Baba Ramdev and Sachin Tendulkar, have praised her.

Parineeti has been continuously teaching Yoga since the Corona days. She has taught it to lakhs of people through around 200 Yoga camps in 10 states of the country, including Rajasthan.

This sequence of her teaching continues. She said, “The camps are organised only on school holidays so that my studies are not interrupted.”

When she teaches Yoga in a camp, explaining its importance, everyone is amazed at how effectively a 12-year-old Yoga guru teaches the exercises. Parineeti believes that children living indoors should do Yoga as it makes them active.

Parineeti recently showcased her Yoga skills on the popular television show ‘India's Got Talent’. She also became famous nationwide when she performed with her 70-year-old grandmother. She has over 10 lakh followers on Instagram.

Along with her father, she is looking forward to the inclusion of Yoga as a sports discipline in the Asian Games and the Olympics soon. She is working hard to win the gold for the country in these competitions.

Yoga is set to debut at the 2026 Asiad in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan, as a demonstration sport. It is hoped that it will become a competitive, medal-awarding event from the 2030 Asiad.

“I want the entire world to do Yoga so that the people remain healthy,” she said. “It is a matter of pride when people address me as Parineeti’s father instead of by my own name,” her father disclosed.