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To Make Women Run, Milind Soman Goes The Whole Nine Yards

To Make Women Run, Milind Soman Goes The Whole Nine Yards
MUMBAI, INDIA - FEBRUARY 8: (EDITORâS NOTE: This is an exclusive shoot of Mint) Former supermodel-turned-film producer and ace runner Milind Soman during an exclusive interview at a Shivaji Park Cafe Coffee Day on February 8, 2016 in Mumbai, India. Milind Soman said, 'I've learnt that I'm unpredictable and unstable, not emotionally, but in terms of my lifestyle. I don't have a job. I don't have a career. I travel a lot. I like to experience different things.' (Photo by Aniruddha Chowdhury/Mint via Getty Images)
Mint via Getty Images
MUMBAI, INDIA - FEBRUARY 8: (EDITORâS NOTE: This is an exclusive shoot of Mint) Former supermodel-turned-film producer and ace runner Milind Soman during an exclusive interview at a Shivaji Park Cafe Coffee Day on February 8, 2016 in Mumbai, India. Milind Soman said, 'I've learnt that I'm unpredictable and unstable, not emotionally, but in terms of my lifestyle. I don't have a job. I don't have a career. I travel a lot. I like to experience different things.' (Photo by Aniruddha Chowdhury/Mint via Getty Images)

Model-turned-actor and fitness enthusiast Milind Soman is planning to revolutionise the sari in a way no Indian designer ever has. According to reports, Soman, who recently won the Ironman title, is planning to launch a ‘running’ sari for women who want to exercise without having to swap their saris for a pair of track-pants or shorts.

Soman, who is the face of Pinkathon, a marathon dedicated to women empowerment, is already working with a Delhi-based designer to launch this eclectic fitness garment. There was some speculation about the designer being Madhu Jain, Soman’s long-time friend who has collaborated with him in the past. But when HuffPost India contacted Jain, she stated categorically that she was not Soman's collaborator in the project.

Soman has revealed that the sporty saris will come in traditional designs. “Women should be able to say, ‘I want a running Banarasi or Chanderi,’ he said in an interview with Times of India.

In the interview, Soman also said that most Indian women were not comfortable running in shorts. “So, we want to give them a special sari, which is lighter and has less volume of cloth, so that they can feel comfortable running, while wearing it. Indian women have saris to go to the market, weddings, kitty parties and even to sit at home, but they don’t have a sari to run in or exercise in. So, whether women want to do yoga or exercise, we want them to feel comfortable.”

Soman also told Homegrown.in that he had observed women participants in Pinkathons wearing loose shirts and baggy pants that they probably belonged to their husbands. He recalled that some had participated in burkas too. “They are not used to wearing tights, shorts, tank tops and the likes, and I don’t want that to be a reason to evade their own health and fitness,” he said.

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This article exists as part of the online archive for HuffPost India, which closed in 2020. Some features are no longer enabled. If you have questions or concerns about this article, please contact indiasupport@huffpost.com.