South Asian Yoga Teachers to learn from+ South Asian Orgs to Pay Reparations to! ♥
If you are here, it is likely that you and I both benefit from the indigenous wisdom of practices like Yoga, meditation, pranayama (breathing exercises), self-study and more - everyday!
Please consider donating to one of the orgs on Give India (a list of duly verified nonprofits and beneficiaries that are helping India fight the second deadly wave of COVID-19) and/or sharing this information in your circle of influence.
Check out these awesome South Asian Yoga teachers who are fostering change and making this wisdom more accessible:
Anisha Chirmule is a dear friend of mine and an Indian, queer yoga instructor and wellness enthusiast. Her classes and teaching style encourages practitioners to engage with themselves and tune into the world around them. She practices and teaches yoga because ultimately she believes loving yourself is the greatest gift to share. Anisha loves to share the Hindu stories she grew up with and relearned through yogic teachings to paint bigger worlds for ourselves than just the ones we see!
Yoga is Dead is a revolutionary team with a podcast that explores power, privilege, fair pay, harassment, race, cultural appropriation and capitalism in the yoga and wellness worlds. Join Indian-American hosts Tejal and Jesal as they expose all the monsters lurking under the yoga mat.
Susanna Barkataki is a teacher, inclusivity promoter, and yoga culture advocate.
Puja Singh Titchkosky aka Prince Puja is a queer, non-binary trans, Indian-Canadian, musician + yoga, meditation and music teacher based in Los Angeles, California (born in Vancouver, BC). Their work focuses on helping people tune into the power of the Universe, slow down, practice presence and find their unique voice in order to more fully and joyfully express themselves in any and all areas of their life.
The Curvy Yogi is a body positive, inclusive, mind-body approach for practitioners in larger bodies, founded by Luvena Rangel, one of India's trailblazing yoga teachers. She offers her expertise in yoga for spinal injuries and thyroid imbalance, integrative anatomy, prenatal yoga, Ayurveda, meditation, philosophy, and teaching methodology to several teacher trainings and her to corporate wellness clients. She is an active voice in cultural representation of Indian teachers and addressing cultural appropriation of yoga in the international context.