A fitness studio that empowers ordinary people
Q: Before discussing your company, could you introduce yourself?
I am from Calcutta, India, where I spent my formative years growing up in a conservative environment where girls are raised to be someone’s daughter, wife and mother. Although I was educated at a local school, I read all the books I could get my hands on, from local libraries to second-hand bookstores.
The frontier and the unknown were what excited me deeply, so I left home for the first time at 17. Although I have traveled and lived in many places since then, Shanghai has been my second home since 2012.
During my professional career, I worked for both start-ups and large multinationals but was driven to do something that could have a direct positive impact. I founded RISE Shanghai in 2019.
Q: Why did you decide to strike out on your own in business?
Unlike a lot of people in fitness, I don’t come from a sports background. I discovered fitness in my early days in Shanghai, and it completely changed my life. I switched companies and careers multiple times, but I never stopped training. My desire to learn more about exercise led me to dive deep into physiology, anatomy and programming. I started coaching, and I never felt more rewarded. I witnessed people’s lives transform for the better, and that was the power of fitness.
We are living lives of excess and convenience and are therefore more sedentary than ever. The science and truth behind the exercise are not new, but its delivery and propagation are grossly adulterated. The prevailing narrative in the health and fitness industry was that it no longer prioritized health. In the pursuit of weight loss, sweat, aesthetics and high intensity, people have lost sight of what exactly fitness is about. And that’s health. We exercise first and foremost to be healthier. It was personal to me, and I saw the gap there. Therefore, I set out to build my own institution where I could begin to rewrite the narrative and help people regain control of their health.
Q: What makes Shanghai’s business environment so remarkable?
From the moment I decided I was going to open a gym, to actually opening the gym, it took less than two months. Sure, it was an MVP (Minimum Viable Product), and I had bootstrapped it together, but from a bureaucratic standpoint, this is remarkable. There are few places in the world where someone, let alone a foreigner, can make it happen so fast. There is a saying that when inspiration strikes, action should follow immediately; every minute that you wait, your chances of actually getting started get smaller and smaller.
Shanghai is one of the most vibrant and energizing cities that I have ever had the opportunity to live in. I have witnessed much growth, change and lessons in the past 12 years. It’s an understatement to say that Shanghai has enabled me to build my dreams and continues to keep them alive.
Q: What were you trying to bring to the local community?
There is a large group of ordinary people who shy away from the fitness industry. Gyms have become intimidating environments where people who need fitness the most are far too afraid to even walk near those spaces. And those who do muster up the courage to enter are being told that the secret to a happy life is abs, slim legs, or monstrous strength.
I believe that exercise is something that everyone should be doing, regardless of age. It’s at the bottom of the pyramid, right next to food, water and sleep. I want to build a space that serves ordinary people with actual health through holistic, sustainable exercise programs. I want to serve people who deserve more than running on a treadmill and definitely more than workouts that burn them out. There is a big spectrum that lies between everything and nothing. Most people thrive on that spectrum. And that’s exactly where RISE is.
Q: What are the biggest challenges to setting up a business here? How do you stay motivated?
I started RISE in December 2019 and spent the first years in business learning once-in-a-lifetime lessons on crisis management as we witnessed a pandemic. Although those were unforeseen circumstances, generally speaking, I find that doing business in Shanghai comes with a side of unpredictability. What makes Shanghai so vibrant and dynamic is also what makes it harder to keep up with.
Specific to me, I think communicating the values of my business, which are all about slow, sustainable progress and long-term health in a culture that rewards fast results, quick fixes and instant