Fitness

Mar 2023

7-year-old Indian girl becomes world’s youngest yoga instructor

Praanvi Gupta, 7 years and 165 days old, clinched the Guinness World Record for the ‘Youngest Yoga Instructor (Female)’. It started as a hobby and passion for the schoolgirl but has now turned into a full-fledged career for the Indian.

However, Praanvi isn’t the first from the country to achieve such a feat. In 2021, Reyansh Surana became the youngest yoga instructor (male) at the age of 9 years and 220 days, before Gupta took the title of the ‘youngest’ from him.

She completed the 200-hour Yoga Teacher Training Course after which she was approved and certified as an Registered Yoga Teacher (RYT200) by the Yoga Alliance Organization.

Praanvi started watching her mother doing yoga when she was just over three years old; she would sit and try to imitate her mother’s poses and moves. Eventually, she would go on to practise it on her own and then master it gradually.

About five months or so ago, Gupta was enrolled into yoga classes at the age of just 7. It was during these yoga sessions which she used to attend in between school breaks when the youngster discovered her love for the activity and wished to spread it via teaching.

“I want to spread the love of yoga to as many people as possible!”, Praanvi said, as per the Guinness World Records website. A few months in her classes, her yoga teacher was the one who suggested Praanvi to enroll into the Yoga Teachers Training Program.

“Praanvi has been a very enthusiastic student with a calm mind and willingness to learn. She is a blessed child, and later she turned out to be one of the brightest students I have ever met at this age. She has been very attentive and dedicated in all the classes,” Dr. Seema Kamath, a medical director and Ayurveda practitioner, said, who is also Praanvi’s teacher.

The school-goer is also the recipient of numerous Gold medals in International Olympiads for her excellent accomplishments. “This journey was not an easy one, because of my regular school which was also ongoing,” Praanvi said. 

“But, with great support from my teachers and parents, I’m happy that I successfully completed and passed the qualification exam of Yoga Teachers Training Course,” she added.

Gupta’s passion for teaching yoga culminated into a YouTube channel called ‘Learning with Praanvi’ on which she teaches children and adults about the various themes around yoga and also shares her own journey with everyone.