I’ve never thrived on external validation: Saiyami Kher

Saiyami Kher has completed her second Ironman 70.3 Triathlon and has become the only Indian actor to have commenced the race twice within a year. She completed it on July 6, 2025, in Jönköping, Sweden. The Ironman 70.3, is one of the most grueling endurance challenges in the world, testing athletes across 1.9 km of open water swimming, 90 km of cycling, and a 21.1 km half marathon run all within a single day. “People often ask why I put myself through this kind of torture. The truth is, it’s not about proving anything to the world. I’ve never thrived on external validation. For me, endurance sport is deeply personal — it’s a race against my own doubts.”

“This year, my only goal was to be better than I was last year. And I did just that,” said Saiyami in a heartfelt post after the race. She added: “As a woman it’s additionally a big pain to do such a physically challenging activity with your period but it’s just a reminder that it’s always mind over matter. There’s a strange, quiet pride in finishing something that once felt impossible. A deep joy.”

As per a statement, Saiyami had earlier completed her first Ironman 70.3 in September 2024, marking her debut in the international endurance racing circuit. Her second race in Sweden was the European championship and came with additional challenges including cold waters, relentless hills, strong headwinds. Saiyami managed to finish 32 minutes faster than her previous race. On the work front, the actress has “Special Ops 2,” which stars Kay Kay Menon, Vinay Pathak, Tahir Raj Bhasin, Karan Tacker, Arif Zakaria amongst other actors. The show will start streaming from July 11.

Special Ops, which was first released in 2020, is an action espionage thriller series directed by Neeraj Pandey. It stars Kay Kay Menon as Himmat Singh, a member of Research and Analysis Wing, forms a team of five agents, in order to track down a person, who is the mastermind of the terror attacks which took place in India.

The actress was recently seen in “Jaat” starring Sunny Deol and Randeep Hooda. Directed by Gopichand Malineni, the film also stars Regina Cassandra in lead roles alongside Jagapathi Babu, Ramya Krishnan, Vineet Kumar Singh, Prashant Bajaj, Zarina Wahab, P. Ravi Shankar and Babloo Prithiveeraj.

Saiyami made her debut with the 2015 Telugu film “Rey” and appeared in Rakesh Omprakash Mehra’s Punjabi folklore “Mirza Sahiban” based Hindi film “Mirzya” opposite Harshvardhan Kapoor in the following year.

Meanwhile, Saiyami has opened up about returning to the sets of “Special Ops Season 2” after five years, describing it as a deeply nostalgic and enriching experience. Stepping back into a world she once called home, the actress shared how reconnecting with familiar faces and revisiting her character brought a rush of memories and emotions. Reflecting on the experience, Saiyami shared, “Returning to the sets of Special Ops after five years was deeply nostalgic. It brought back a flood of memories from the intensity of the scenes to the camaraderie we shared as a team.”

“Collaborating again with Neeraj Pandey sir and Kay Kay Menon continues to be a valuable learning experience. Both of them bring so much depth and vision to the storytelling, it pushes you to give your best every single time.”

The upcoming new season brings together a dynamic mix of familiar faces and fresh talent. Returning to reprise their roles are Kay Kay Menon, Karan Tacker, Vinay Pathak, Meher Vij, Muzammil Ibrahim, and Saiyami Kher. Joining the cast this time are actors Tahir Raj Bhasin and Prakash Raj.

Saiyami was last seen in ‘Agni’ alongside Pratik Gandhi. The actress is also gearing up for her Malayalam film debut, where she stars opposite acclaimed actor Roshan Mathew.

Indo-Asian News Service