“They are extremely muscular, strong and confident girls… but still, they have a certain softness”
Bodybuilders challenging female norms in South India
by Jacqui PalumboCNN
EDITOR’S NOTE The opening photograph of the article includes Chitra Purushotham, who is not interviewed in this article but is one of the bodybuilders photographed by Keerthana Kunnath
In idyllic settings in the coastal state of Kerala in southwest India, photographer Keerthana Kunnath has captured images of muscular women flexing their heroic forms. Between foamy waves, palm fronds or rocky outcrops, women curl their biceps, tighten their quads or exaggerate their shoulders, swapping their gym clothes for a sheer olive dress or a feminine checkered bikini top and skirt.
But in Kerala, where the London-based photographer is from, bodybuilding is still taboo for women, who are expected to adhere to traditional, feminine norms. After coming across a competitor’s Instagram account, Keerthana Kunnath was fascinated by the female bodybuilders who dedicated their time to the sport and defied social conventions – and often also the desires of their families.
“Where we are is not a very common thing,” explains Keerthana Kunnath in a phone call with CNN. “I almost wouldn’t call it a ‘community’ because it’s still so new and there are only a handful of girls who do it.”
Across India, a growing number of female competitors in this sport have achieved professional status with the governing body, the International Federation of Fitness and Bodybuilding – but only in recent years. Deepika Chowdury, a former molecular biologist, became the first Indian woman to do so in 2016.
Initially interested in investigating a gender-neutral martial art called “Kalaripayattu” originating from Kerala, Keerthana Kunnath changed her focus after discovering that women focused on bulking up. The female bodybuilders she photographed — part of her “Not What You Saw” series — didn’t know each other well, but they knew about each other through social media and competitions.
“Whenever I interacted with each person and told them I was going to photograph that person before you, they said, ‘Oh my God, I know her – her body is amazing. Her thighs are crazy.’ I felt a mutual admiration between all of them.”
Dedication to sport
For Bhumika Kumar, who is 22 and lives in the Kerala city of Kochi, training for bodybuilding competitions is the fulfillment of a long-held desire to become an athlete – a dream she wasn’t allowed to fulfill as a child, she says. to CNN via WhatsApp. Now a gold medalist in local competitions such as Miss Kerala and Miss Ernakulam, she has transformed herself after what she described as “an inactive childhood”.
“My parents didn’t let me go out and play with other children. So I wasn’t a very physically active child during my school days. I always had little resistance and strength.”
As an adult, she discovered the gateway to exercise through training videos on YouTube and signed up to a gym “after many discussions with her family”. She felt drawn to competing professionally, but was also torn about whether to do so until a year ago. “I couldn’t stop thinking about going on stage. So I decided to finally move on and met my coach.”
Kumar isn’t the only woman on the show whose family members felt entitled to be involved in their personal choices. Keerthana Kunnath spoke extensively with each of them over the phone before meeting them in person, in order to better understand their journeys.
“A lot of them were pressured by family and close relatives: ‘How do you let your daughter into this space where you’re working your muscles? They’re showing their bodies’”, he says, remembering the type of comments his interviewees had heard.
heroic portraits
Kerala’s female bodybuilders are entering a high-pressure, male-dominated sport that requires a daily commitment to coaches accustomed to training men. One of those photographed by Keerthana Kunnath, Sandra AS, 25, has been training for four years and is now also a trainer for aspiring bodybuilders. She hopes to break down barriers for female competitors by earning a qualifying card to compete professionally on the international stage.
When Keerthana Kunnath envisioned the series, she turned to the iconography of Indian goddesses she encountered during her childhood. “I still remember having these posters of goddesses in front of these serene backgrounds.” Working with a local stylist, Keerthana Kunnath sought heroic, non-sexualized portraits, with soft pastels and flowing fabrics, moving away from colorful, punchy gym clothes or swimwear and direct bodybuilding stage lighting.
“They are extremely muscular, strong and confident girls… but still, they have a certain softness”, says Keerthana Kunnath. The photographer found that the more a bodybuilder bulks up, the more she is treated as a “really strong, intimidating character,” but that isn’t always the case.
Since the start of the series, Keerthana Kunnath has also made a point of supporting her subjects by participating in competitions and taking professional photos of them as a thank you for being part of the work.
“They had to create this space for themselves. I feel like these stories should be celebrated.”
