Meet Dr H R Nagendra: Narendra Modi's yoga therapist who could rid CM Arvind Kejriwal of his chronic cough

BENGALURU: He rises much before the sun. His day begins at 1.30 am and an hour later, he plunges into his regular two-and-a-half-hour yoga session. Meet Dr H R Nagendra, who could soon be treating Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal if the latter goes according to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's prescription.

Watching Kejriwal battling persistent cough at a programme in Delhi on Tuesday, Modi had suggested that he consult the yoga therapist. "Allergic cough and diabetes are ailing Kejriwal," said Dr HR Nagendra, who is known for having treated over 2 lakh asthma patients — from three-month-olds to nonagenarians — with yoga and ayurveda. Kejriwal, though, is yet to approach Nagendra.

The 72-year-old yoga therapist's association with Modi began 10 years ago when the BJP leader came to meet Nagendra's uncle H V Sheshadri, an RSS leader, in Karnataka. The acquaintance has only grown since. "Every year, I travel to Gujarat to teach yoga to cabinet ministers, including chief minister Anandiben Patel," he told TOI.

Nagendra, who is co-founder of Swamy Vivekananda Yoga Anusandhana Samsthana (S-VYASA), believes that specialised yoga and lifestyle modifications are the key to health solutions. "We have taught yoga to kids with special needs. We've even had monks from Ramakrishna Ashram and nuns from Christian missionaries approach us," he said.

"In a polluted city like Bengaluru, asthma cases are on the rise. We had conducted a study on how yoga helped asthma patients, which was published in the Journal of Asthma, US. We formed three separate groups of those who practised yoga regularly, those who weren't so regular and those who had learnt it but were not doing asanas. The study revealed that even the third category of people had benefited," recalled Nagendra.

Nagendra is a qualified mechanical engineer who has a PhD from IISc. He's had a stint with NASA as a space scientist and also served Harvard University as consultant.

Many premier institutions, including Nimhans, consult him. "He has been guiding the yoga centre in Nimhans for more than 15 years. We have signed an MoU with S-VYASA and will continue to do collaborative research. He has an objective approach towards yogic science. He's been working on taking yoga beyond faith, as youngsters look for scientific validation," said Dr B N Gangadhar, professor of psychiatry and programme director of advanced centre for yoga at Nimhans.

Nagendra has penned 35 books on yoga and presented over 100 research papers on engineering and yoga. Another feather was added to his cap when he was honoured with the title 'Yoga Sri' by none other than the legendary BKS Iyengar. Stay updated on the go with Times of India News App. Click here to download it for your device.