On a Sunday morning, a group of women gather at Turfside, Hyderabad. They begin with a warm up and spend the next 90 minutes playing football. Not all of them are adept at the game. A coach guides them with the dos and don’ts. The women sportingly navigate the moves and by the end of the session, are a sweaty mess. The satisfaction of a morning well spent is unmistakable. It aligns with the objective with which the Hyderabad chapter of Sisters in Sweat kicked off a few weeks ago.
In 2017, Sisters in Sweat (SIS) began in Bengaluru as a community to encourage women to participate in sports and fitness. Founded by Swetha Subbiah and Tanvie Hans, SIS is now a 10,000-plus community with a presence in Bengaluru, Mumbai, New Delhi and Hyderabad. The members participate in basketball, football, kickboxing, running, touch rugby, yoga, dance and other fitness activities.
Zerodha-backed Rainmatter recently announced its decision to invest in SIS, giving it the scope to further its reach. Swetha confirms that the community is looking to expand to 10 cities by 2026.
The beginning
SIS began over a game of football with friends. Tanvie, a football player with the English Premier League, had moved back to Delhi and eventually to Bengaluru. Swetha, a Nike-certified fitness instructor, and Tanvie, met in 2016 during the Nike India promotional campaign ‘Da da ding’ and became friends. Shweta recounts, “A friend who was keen to learn football requested Tanvie to conduct a session. Since it is a team sport, we called some of our friends, booked a ground and played the following Sunday.”
Swetha Subbiah and Tanvie Hans, founders of SIS
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Special Arrangement
Over breakfast, the women expressed their interest in regular meet-ups. A WhatsApp group was created immediately and the 17 women who participated in the game became members. At the time, Swetha and Tanvie did not realise they had created a unique community. “Both of us had always been outgoing and participated in sports and fitness activities. We were not aware of the barriers until other women voiced their experiences. We realised there is a need to have women-only sessions and spaces,” says Swetha.
It was a challenge to find certified female coaches, so SIS began roping in both male and female certified coaches for each sports and fitness sessions. The community grew in strength.
SIS Hyderabad
The Hyderabad chapter took shape when Anusha Rao, a former professional tennis player, showed interest. She had heard about SIS through friends in Bengaluru and approached Swetha. Anusha spread the word through her school and college friends, some of whom are in the corporate sector. Word-of-mouth publicity and social media resulted in a 250-strong community.
Anusha Rao
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Special Arrangement
SIS Hyderabad meets on Saturdays and Sundays, and aims to host sessions through the week as the community grows. The challenge is to find meet-up spots in a geographically-expanding city. “Banjara and Jubilee Hills seem to be convenient for most members, even those from Secunderabad. Some do not mind Madhapur or Kondapur which are sports hubs. Gachibowli and the Financial District are further away. We are still studying the city to find out the areas of interest for women in fitness and sports and what would work geographically,” says Anusha.
Anusha observes that while Frisbee evokes enthusiasm in Mumbai and Bengaluru, Hyderabad veers towards football, kickboxing, running, pickleball, and calisthenics. Each week, details of the meet-up are posted on the SIS website and the WhatsApp group. Interested members can register and pay a fee, which ranges from ₹300 to ₹1000, depending on the venue and the coaching requirement.
Cracking the age barrier
Coaching for aspiring runners has begun this month, apart from weekly football sessions. Plans are on to encourage women to have a holistic approach to sports and fitness, with strength training, flexibility, mandatory warmups and cool downs. Anusha observes that most participants in Hyderabad are in the 20s-to-40s age group. “Fifty-plus age group is tougher to crack. We have also noticed that basketball and badminton might be tougher for those in their 40s and 50s with no prior sports experience, but there are other activities that can be explored.”
Warming up for the football session
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Siddhant Thakur/ Shot on OnePlus/ #FramesOfIndia
Anusha is confident that “playing a sport is the new method to socialising”, and believes that more women would be keen if sessions could be held in neighbourhoods of the city. “We want to be able to conduct sessions in every corner of Hyderabad, from Secunderabad to Tellapur.”
As the Hyderabad chapter hopes to expand its reach, SIS has larger plans. Backed by Rainmatter’s funding, Swetha hopes to conduct mass participatory events. Earlier this year, Bengaluru SIS hosted a run in which 2,000 women participated.
“Most of our regular sessions have up to 20 women participating, and in some cases go up to 100 to 150. A few guidelines we adhere to include making the sessions interactive to help participants break the ice and vibe with each other,” Swetha says.
Sports and fitness are made less intimidating by playing fun music in the background, Swetha says. “Coaches function more like friends. It is important for everyone to have a great time while indulging in sports and fitness.”
