6 min readNew DelhiFeb 25, 2025 05:25 AM IST
First published on: Feb 24, 2025 at 08:53 PM IST
A day after he urged people in his monthly Mann Ki Baat to combat obesity by reducing consumption of edible oil by 10%, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday nominated 10 public figures from different walks of life including politics, industry, sports and entertainment to strengthen the cause.
Modi requested each of the 10 nominees to nominate 10 people in turn to broaden the fight against obesity.
The list of Modi’s 10 nominees is a balance of regions, genders and professions. It includes six men and four women; and while four of the nominees are from south India, there is one each from the Northeast, Jammu and Kashmir, Maharashtra, Haryana, West Bengal and Uttar Pradesh.
Anand Mahindra
One of India’s top industrialists, the Mumbai-based Mahindra is the Chairman of the Mahindra and Mahindra Group. He runs multiple businesses and also helms “Nanhi Kali”, an initiative aimed at providing primary education to underprivileged girls. The 69-year-old often shares exercise videos on social media, and a couple of years ago posted that he rotated his “weekly fitness routine between cardio-vascular (swimming/ellipticals) muscle tone (working out with weights) & stretching (Yoga)”.
“To achieve the mission of a Viksit Bharat by 2047, we not only need a strong economy but a healthy population as well…
Making small changes, like using even 10% less cooking oil can build up to big contributions; be it to your well-being, to your wallet, or to a healthier world. Thank you, PM @narendramodi, for your call to action,” he reacted to his nomination in a post on X.
Dinesh Lal Yadav ‘Nirahua’
With roots in Ghazipur of eastern Uttar Pradesh, he is one of the leading faces of Bhojpuri cinema. He joined the BJP in 2019 and unsuccessfully contested against Samajwadi Party (SP) chief Akhilesh Yadav from Azamgarh in the Lok Sabha elections that year. He defeated Dharmendra Yadav of the SP in the 2022 Azamgarh bypoll. In 2018, the 46-year-old had been among those who accepted the fitness challenge by then minister of state for Youth Affairs and Sports Rajyavardhan Rathore. Manu Bhaker
Hailing from Jhajjar in Haryana, she became the first Indian to win two medals in a single Olympics at the Paris Games in shooting. The 23-year-old was recently awarded the Khel Ratna, the highest sporting honour in the country. Incidentally, this followed a week of ruffled feathers when Bhaker was not in the award list.
Mirabai Chanu
A weightlifter from Imphal, Manipur, she won the silver medal in the 49-kg category at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. The 30-year-old has been awarded with the Padma Shri and the Khel Ratna.
Chanu took to social media to express her happiness. “Elated to be nominated by PM @narendramodi_in ji to spread awareness in the fight against obesity. Making small changes to our daily lives can result in a huge transformation all over the country and help us move towards achieving our dream of making a fit India,” she said.
Mohanlal
The veteran actor is a superstar of Malayalam cinema and is considered one of Indian cinema’s finest performers. A Padma Bhushan awardee, Mohanlal, 64, has won five national film awards – including two for the best actor. He often shares videos of his fitness regime.
Nandan Nilekani
Hailing from Karnataka, Nilekani co-founded Infosys. The 69-year-old served as the first chairman of the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI), which rolled out Aadhaar.
Omar Abdullah
The current Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir, Omar Abdullah is the vice-president of the National Conference (NC) and hails from a political family. His grandfather Shaikh Abdullah was the first Prime Minister of Jammu and Kashmir while his father Farooq Abdullah is a former CM. “I’m very happy to join the campaign against obesity launched by PM @narendramodi ji. Obesity causes a number of lifestyle related health issues like heart disease, type 2 diabetes, strokes & breathing problems not to mention mental health conditions like anxiety & depression,” Abdullah wrote on X after being nominated by Modi. Soon after the 54-year-old became the CM, he had participated in a 21-km half marathon. He also often shares his exercise videos.
R Madhavan
A popular movie star, he has starred in films across many languages. He has been a recipient of the National Award for his film and directorial debut Rocketry: The Nambi Effect, a biopic on ISRO scientist Nambi Narayanan, who was falsely accused of espionage. Madhavan, 54, who is currently the president of the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII), Pune, has put out tweets praising PM Modi in the recent past. After a significant weight loss following the gaining of weight for Rocketry, Madhavan had offered a glimpse into his fitness regimen and dietary practices on X.
Shreya Ghoshal
One of the most successful female playback singers in the Hindi film industry, she was born in West Bengal and brought up in Rajasthan. The 40-year-old has sung songs in multiple Indian languages and has won five national film awards.
Sudha Murty
Wife of Infosys co-founder N R Narayan Murthy, she is the founder- chairperson of the Infosys Foundation. She was nominated to the Rajya Sabha last year and has also authored several books. The 74-year-old is an R K Narayan Award for Literature and Padma Bhushan awardee.
Modi requested each of the 10 nominees to nominate 10 people in turn to broaden the fight against obesity. (Screengrab: X@narendramodi) 
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