SOPHIA KHAN: WHAT DOES WELLNESS MEAN TO YOu?

AMAFAH MUBASHIR: That is a tough question because wellness is so expansive. I think for me it means being in tune with my body – if this means sleeping a few extra hours on some days or sitting with my girlfriends and venting, that is wellness for me. It can also mean being on my own and just painting – whatever makes me feel good in a healthy way.

SK: How did your wellness journey begin?

AM: I became a yoga instructor about 10 years ago. When I was an art student, I had super unhealthy habits, meaning that I would equate my worth to how much I produced. I was caught up in a rat race, to the point where I was bragging about how little I slept and forgetting to eat because I was so engrossed in my work. After graduating, I went into advertising, and from a wellness perspective, advertising is the worst industry to be in. Don’t get me wrong, it was exhilarating and a lot of fun. I lived for the adrenaline rush, but it was extremely fast-paced and high powered. Our entire lives were confined to the office, and my first meal of the day was a cigarette and a coffee. After a while, the nuances of advertising started to get to me, and one day, it dawned on me that I was really just selling milk to people – and I thought to myself, “What am I doing that is of substance or actually makes a difference?” I am not trying to purport that I’m making a difference by teaching yoga, but it is so much more fulfilling.

SK: How did you move into yoga?

AM: I started taking yoga classes in an effort to mend my relationship with my body. In those days there were only a handful of studios. My introduction was through an Instagram ad, and it was love from the first class I took. It was amazing. I was able to switch my mind off for an hour, something I had never done before. My body felt good, and I was sleeping better. Then the feeling of wanting to be at the yoga studio and not at work began to gnaw at me. I needed to go to my yoga class twice a week to stay sane, and at work I was dreaming about doing yoga in the mountains. I finally took the plunge and quit my job, or tried to. I started working part-time and went to Thailand for my yoga training. When I came back, that feeling had only intensified. I was met with a lot of opposition: “Are you crazy? You want to leave this career to become a yoga teacher?” Six months later, I quit completely and became a yoga instructor.

SK: How did your training affect you?

AM: It was the first time in my life that I was on my own and allowed to be whoever I chose to be in that moment. When you grow up in a place like Karachi, there is a lot of attachment to the person you are, and it’s difficult to break out of that personality. At the retreat, they make you examine all the different facets that mirror who you are: the good and the bad. And it is hard to look at yourself and say, I love this part of myself, but not that part – and yet I should love that part of myself as well.

SK: How did that self-reflection change you?

AM: It changed the way I perceived spirituality, religion and God. I believe our relationship with faith mirrors our relationship with ourselves. When I was sitting by myself and allowing myself to connect with the shadows and light within me on a beach in Thailand, I felt so connected to God and to the idea of a higher power – and that love was just flowing through me.

SK: What were your early days as a yoga practitioner like?

AM: When I started, I barely had three people in my class, which was to be expected as I was new in the wellness circle. Also in those days, fitness boot camps were the trend. However, I told myself I would persevere even if I didn’t have enough students; I would keep at this until it worked out.

SK: What led you to establish Asana Wellness?

AM: I think every yoga instructor dreams of having their own space because it becomes a reflection of who you are, and you want to create that energy for your community. Everyone around me thought my love for yoga would be a fleeting passion and I would go back to advertising. But in my heart, I knew yoga was it for me. I tried to set up a studio several times, but the universe would put a halt to these plans in some way, and I took it as a sign that it was not the right time, so I persevered by building Amafah’s Asanas on social media, and that was where Asana Wellness started to bloom.

SK: What does Asana Wellness offer?

AM: We offer holistic wellness; a lot of classes, primarily yoga but also dance, low-impact workouts, sound bowl meditation, voice meditation and breathwork, as well as sensuality and couple’s workshops. However, first and foremost, my ethos for this space is building community. Apart from the yoga studio, we have a therapist’s office with a private entrance so therapists can rent the space and meet their clients in complete privacy. There is also a training room for budding yoga teachers, something I wish I had access to when I first started out.

SK: What are your views on the commodification of wellness?

AM: A lot of us give our energy, our time and our space as energy healers, yoga and fitness instructors and Reiki practitioners. For a lot of us this is our primary means of income. You can spend Rs 10,000 on a yoga studio membership or on an outfit – the choice is yours.

SK: What does wellness look like for people who don’t have access to it?

AM: I feel that for people who come to the city for work, their one month holiday back home is their wellness time. As I said, wellness looks different for everyone. However, I believe that if people are taught basic techniques, they can incorporate those practices into their daily lives. Meditation requires no equipment and nothing but time.

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