Mumbai-based Samar Farooqui is only 27. But he has achieved a sort of daredevilry which majority are not aware of, very few know about and even fewer try it. But Samar, as the country’s only full time slackliner and a professional trainer, dreams of promoting and getting the heart-pounding sport more visibility. His love for the sport and determination returns him for the second year in a row to Chennai’s Covelong Surfing and Music Festival from August 25 to 27.
“Last year at the same festival I set up some slacklines for people to see and try out. I also introduced the competitive section expecting not more than 10 participants. But 23 showed up from across the country!” he says.
The community has definitely grown with slacklining as a skill increasing in popularity among adventure lovers. This time it will be not less than 50 slackliners joining in to push their limits,” says a confident Samar.
Four years ago when he returned from New Zealand after training in slacklining, there were, he says, not more than two-dozen slackliners in India chasing it as a hobby. But when he started an fb page, 200 members popped up showing interest. Today, the community has grown to 4,000 people spread across Delhi, Bangalore, Hampi, Badami, Mumbai, Pune, Nashik, Hyderabad, Chennai. “You will spot them in city parks and beaches on Sunday mornings,” he says.
Sensing that there were people willing to find balance on one or two inch of webbing (flat rope) either for fun or for staying fit and healthy, Samar triggered a wave of , what he calls, ‘slacktivism’ three years ago and established Slacklife Inc, a company that promotes the sport.
“Though we may still be away from international skill levels but I am happy, it is picking up,” he says and asserts, “it is necessary to bring India on the slackline map of the world.” There is an international tribe of about 500 professional slackliners and the world championships have been taking place annually since 2008. It was in 2010 when Samar while working in an adventure tourism company got introduced to it. “As a child I had seen the tightrope walkers performing by the roadside or in circus. When I got the chance, I barely managed balancing on the slackline but the simplicity of it appealed to me. The second try was better and the next time I kept going.”
It took the self-taught Samar -- who subsequently showcased the sport twice on India’s Got Talent TV show -- less than five hours to be able to walk the line completely. Celebrities like Farhan Akhtar and Meiyang Chang have slacklined with him while in the international arena he has done sessions with big names like Andy Lewis and Sam Volery. He became the first Indian to participate in international competition in 2014. It was in Poland where he slacklined between two buildings at a height of 60 feet. Last month he returned from Sweden after exhibiting and teaching flowing dance movements on 2.5 metres long strip. The Swedish media called him the Line Dancer.
“The sport is an absolute brand now”, says Samar. What started off as a hobby for him eight years ago has become his career today, with him constantly travelling to give performances at festivals, participate in adventure sports event, conduct workshops and sessions with school and college students and corporate trainings. He has also launched BetweenYears Slackline Festival every December 29 to January, to encourage people to usher in the new year by enjoying nature and outdoors instead of drinking and partying.
“The spectrum of benefits from slacklining is amazing,” wows Samar. “It is all about fun, fitness and focus, balance, endurance and concentration, strength and stability. The fearless take on the challenges and keep pushing themselves to newer limits.”
For more details log on to www.slacklife.co.in and www.betweenyears.com
Woman slackliner
Pooja Vaidya was the winner among the women slackliners at Covelong Festival 2016. “Even standing sturdy on a slackline is a feat but I also did static tricks like yoga on the thin line,” says the 26-year-old, who has completed Advance Mountaineering course from The Himalayan Mountaineering Institute Darjeeling.
When she enrolled for a Masters in Tourism and Management Course in Christ University, Bangalore, a friend suggested her slacklining to kill Sunday boredom. “I saw people assembling in Cubbon Park and taking a shot at the sport. It was an instant crowd-puller and I got hooked on to it,” she says. “As a climber I needed to strengthen my core muscles and slacklining worked on me beautifully. It also helped me to control my mind.”
“My parents call me Dombari (tightrope walker in Marathi),” laughs Pooja, happy the way her family has accepted her crazy ways of living life. She now works with Quest Expeditions at Kathadi, near Rameswaram, where she is also learning how to surf.
Challenging stability in life, she says, helps you to improve and adapt to anything. In slacklining it is the fear of falling that keeps you going. “The challenge is not about how fit you are but how with unflinching concentration you balance your body weight. The learning and mastering technique is the foundation for so many other valuable lessons in life,” says Pooja.
QUOTE:
Slacklining is like meditation in movement. Everybody should try it at least once in their lifetime either as a sport or workout, meditation or art-- Samar Farooqui, Founder Slacklife Inc
What is slacklining
Is primarily an extreme form of tightrope walking.
The slacklines are strong flat cords made of nylon or polyester of one or two inch width and tied across two anchor points such as poles or trees, building or cliffs. The lines can stretch from 15 metres to three kms or more depending on each individual’s capacity and proficiency. The rope is not held rigid and bounces as the walker progresses. Beginners use low slacklines to prevent injury from falls. With practise and experience, people raise the height of the slacklines and wear a leash and harness to even do acrobatics, yoga, jump and cool drops, flips and planks on the highly elastic walking band in the way a trampoline might. The professional trickliners have raised the bar of the sport by walking between cliffs at thousands of feet above the ground without any support.
Types of slacklines:
Longlines are the most unsteady lines stretching beyond 1000 metres.
Highlines are strung between two cliffs or buildings.
Waterlines are over a stream of water
Shorter and tighter lines are used for Yoga. Highly elastic and bouncy lines are used for tricklining, often involving jumps and flips.
Tips for slacklining:
First align and balance on the slackline and learn to stand steady.
Remember how you learnt walking in childhood, take baby steps.
Never look down at the ground, only look forward and ahead
Relax your body and mind completely and focus
Don’t lock your knees. Keep your hands free to maintain rhythm
Keep breathing. If you hold your breath, your body becomes rigid and you fall