10,000 women paint the city pink

Bengaluru: It was an action-packed Sunday. While cricket buffs were hooked to the India-South Africa clash on TV, the adventurous lot stepped out to catch the buzz on the last day of Aero India. But a mind-boggling 10,000 women decided to chart their own course. They put on their running shoes and turned up for Pinkathon, an all-woman run in the 3km, 5km, 10km and 21km categories. Driven by the objective of encouraging women's health, the event was flagged off by Pinkathon founder and fitness enthusiast Milind Soman. It was organized by Maximus MICE & Media Solutions Pvt Ltd under the aegis of United Sisters Foundation. Box: Babies' day out A group of 100 mothers stood out in the sea of pink — they ran with their babies strapped to them for the 3km and 5km categories. Participants included a squad of 20 cancer survivors, 30 visually impaired girls and a group of 20 hearing- and speech-impaired girls. Box: Biggies step out The event saw Arjuna awardee Shantha Rangaswamy, athletes Reeth Abraham and Ashwini Nachappa, playback singer Supriya Raghunandan, flautist Pravin Godkhindi, actors Bharathi Vishnuvardhan, Priyanka Upendra, Nikita Tukral and Vinayak Joshi, theatre personality Arundhati Nag and entrepreneur Kiran Mazumdar Shaw support the cause. Quotes Each woman is a celeb Having witnessed the grand manner in which Bengaluru has come out to support our cause, we believe we have successfully sown the seed of change. Pinkathon is much more than just a marathon. It is the beginning of a movement being carried forward by a growing community of women across India, who believe that a healthy family, a healthy nation and a healthy world begins with empowered women. The first step towards empowerment is taking control of your own health, respecting yourself and celebrating the value you bring to society. Each of these 10,000 women is a celebrity Milind Soman, Pinkathon founder Setting your own standard It's a great event which just lets you run, with no one keeping an eye on you. Women run for themselves as they believe in the cause. The participants have set their own benchmark. To sum it up, it's an inspiring event. Sonia Narang, Pinkathon brand ambassador Babywearing keeps me fit I have 'worn' my son since he was a newborn and I believe it keeps me fit. Babywearing also encourages breastfeeding, which reduces chances of breast cancer. So in both these ways, I support the Pinkathon cause Chinmayie Bhat, Founder of Soul Slings which designs slings to carry babies