Shihan Haribabu’s obsession with martial arts began in his childhood. His dedication and technical excellence has earned him the respect of his peers and won him critical acclaim. His journey in Shorei-kan began in 1984 and he travelled the world to learn Shorei-kan karate under renowned masters, Shihan Scott Lenzi in the USA, Shihan Toshio Tamano in Italy and then he had the rare honour to be a direct student of the late Grandmaster, Kaicho Seikichi Toguchi for several years in Tokyo.

He has won several international and regional championships in Japan, including being a finalist in the Okinawa Karate & Kobudo World Tournament in 1997.He was the only Indian and the only Shorei-kan competitor to reach the finals out of 261 competitors from 51 countries.

He was bestowed the title of 'Shihan' (Professor), with the unique distinction of being the only Yondan in Shorei-kan history to be graded to Shihan in May 1996. He was also one the last direct students of Master Toguchi to be awarded the title. Shihan Haribabu was also accorded the honour of being appointed the Shorei-kan representative for Asia by Master Toguchi on 1stOctober 1997. After the passing of Master Toguchi in 1998, Shihan Haribabu has trained under and been graded from Godan through to Hachidan by the legendary Chogi Kishaba Sensei, the last student of Master Chojun Miyagi.

For over 3 decades, Shihan Haribabu has devoted himself to Shorei-kan karate and he still teaches and trains with intensity, dedication, sacrifice and passion.

Shihan-dai Vahitha Haribabu is the wife of Shihan Haribabu and began her training in Shorei-kan karate, under the direct tutelage of Shihan Haribabu in her youth. She has the rare distinction of training directly under Grandmaster Toguchi in Tokyo.

She has twice won the 1st place in the Nakano-ku karate championship in 1993-93 at Tokyo, Japan. Shihan-dai Vahitha has also had the privilege of performing karate demonstrations for the President of India, Mr. R. Venkataraman, the Prime Minister, Mr. V.P. Singh, the Chief of Army Staff, Chief of Navy Staff and Chief of the Air Staff, as part of the National Cadet Corps directorate, representing Tamil Nadu, Pondicherry and the Andaman & Nicobar islands, leading to her selection as the best karate cadet in the year 1990.

She was directly appointed as the Indian Representative by Grandmaster Toguchi in Tokyo.