One Foot in Front of the Other

Basav Biradar is a writer, critic, non-fiction filmmaker, curator, and educator based in Bengaluru, India. Basav’s films have been screened widely in India. His writing on cinema, theatre, travel, culture, and politics has appeared in leading Indian publications such as The Caravan, Film Companion, The Hindu, Article-14, The Newsminute, Mint Lounge, Outlook India, and National Geographic Traveller India, to name a few. He has also contributed essays to anthologies such as Where Gods Dwell published by Westland, India and Redefining the Image – A Harun Farocki retrospective by Goethe Institute, Bangalore. Basav teaches at Srishti Manipal Institute of Art, Design and Technology. As a curator, Basav has curated a retrospective of Girish Kasaravalli at Bangalore International Center. He is currently pursuing his PhD at Michigan State University.

Santhosh is the founder of Runner’s High, a social enterprise and running community that changes lives through long distance running. He works closely with many NGOs and educational initiatives as a teacher and educationist on various initiatives that promote inclusion. A VLSI Engineer by training, Santhosh worked in the technology world for a few years before creating a new life out of his passion for running. Santhosh sees himself as a student and a coach; he runs to feel alive and enjoy every step; he aspires to make a meaning out of his running rather than see it as numbers or goals.

Chandra Gopalan is a fitness trainer and an Ultra marathon runner. She owned and operated a Women’s Fitness chain called Contours. Through Contours, she has shaped the lives of scores of women in India. She has now taken fitness online to many clients, India and abroad. She has run many marathons, Ultra marathons and multi day runs.

She coaches men & women towards long distance running in her capacity as a running coach with Runner’s High. She also undertakes the strength training regime for Runner’s High.

An engineer by education, Krishan works in the IT sector. He took up running in his 30s and later branched into other sports. Introduced to the sport by Runner’s High, he has since completed several marathons and ultramarathons. He has also taken to randonneuring, finishing his maiden Super Randonneur series (200, 300, 400 and 600 km rides within a single calendar year) last year. He is now training for his first solo Hyrox competition, to be held in Mumbai later this year.
Born and raised in Punjab, Krishan has called Bangalore home for over 25 years. He lives with his wife, son, mother and dog.

Manikandan is currently a full-time social worker engaged in the areas of education and livelihood promotion. Born in the industrial town of Thiruverumbur, near Trichy, he completed his engineering and worked in the IT sector for 3 decades before taking early retirement to work in social sector. Originally, a ‘Gym rat’, he was inspired to take up running after meeting Santhosh in 2011. He has run many marathons and ultra marathons, some even lasting 48 hours! He lives in Bangalore with his wife, daughter, and son, who forms his support system as well as cheering squad for his long runs.

Gautam Sonti is an independent documentary filmmaker with a focus on social, cultural, and environmental issues. Many of his films lie at the intersection of technology, politics and the lives of people.