Saish Prabhu says that practicing taichi is one of the best ways to achieve inner peace and good health. Photos by Alywin Chew / China Daily

Born in the idyllic coastal state of Goa in southwestern India and to a father who is a TCM practitioner, Prabhu's childhood was spent running around a clinic where he witnessed how his father's acupuncture treatments would help people suffering from chronic pains and illnesses.

"I remember there was this man who could barely walk because of constant pains in his back. He was popping painkillers as if they were peanuts! After a few months of treatment, he could run and jump with no pain. Incidents like this got me really interested in TCM," said Prabhu.

In fact, even the circumstances of Prabhu's birth was a result of TCM. He said that his mother had felt little to no pain — much to the astonishment of the doctors in the hospital — while giving birth to him because his father had administered acupuncture treatment before she went into labor.

Inspired by his father's passion and dedication to the profession, Prabhu decided to enrol in SUTCM in 2010 to expand his knowledge in this field of medicine. His first two years in the institute was spent learning the Chinese language while the next four years consisted of lessons, practical classes and attachments to various TCM hospitals in Shanghai. And because taichi and TCM actually share much in common, Prabhu discovered that he was able to better understand the theories taught during his lessons after picking up the martial art.

"Acupuncture is not just about pricking someone with needles — it's about how you manipulate energy. It's the same with taichi. This martial art is about feeling the energy and using it for your benefit, be it in fighting or health," he said.

According to Prabhu, taichi is more about achieving a balance between mind and body, as opposed to performing acrobatic kicks and deadly jabs to incapacitate adversaries. One of the ways to achieve this balance is via meditation, an integral part of taichi that he claims has given him "a natural high" — a state of heightened consciousness that allows him to better appreciate the simpler things in life.

"When you enter that surreal state of consciousness, you become hyper aware of everything around you. You can really feel every stone you step on and hear all the people around you. Everything seems to taste better when you're that calm and still too," he said.