Indica Yoga is pleased to launch the second edition of the Global Festival of Yoga 2021 on the International Day of Yoga on 21st June. We have planned a month-long calendar of events that will focus on yoga as a tool for Healing, Well-Being and Wisdom. Our pandemic-affected world has been dealing with illness, emotional upheaval, mental anguish and death. To offer a solution to this suffering, our theme for this year’s festival is Healing, Well-Being and Wisdom, as we believe that yoga, ayurveda, nutrition and the wisdom from our scriptures are effective solutions that work on a physical, mental and emotional level. We will be conducting two sessions a day at 7 am IST and 7 pm IST, and we’ve invited a panel of experts in the field of yoga, ayurveda and healing to conduct these sessions.
For registration kindly use the following links
For Morning : Register
For Evening : Register
Akanksha Damini Joshi is a meditation facilitator, a writer, storyteller and an award winning filmmaker. She pulls in multi dimensional experiences from her documentary filmmaking to design meditation sessions. Her filmmaking oeuvre ranges from social and ecological conflicts to spiritual traditions. Akanksha draws her inspiration from the philosophical basis of Natya Shastra, moulding it with digital technology to create immersive experiences for contemporary seekers. During the pandemic she has been tapping her skills as a filmmaker to live stream state of the art meditations sessions online. More on her @ DaminiJosh.in
Srivatsa Ramaswami is the longest standing student of the legendary Shri T. Krishnamacharya, outside of Krishnamacharya's immediate family.
He has been teaching for more than 25 years in India Kalakshetra (for 20 years, and recognized as an Institution of National Importance by the Govt. of India), Ramachandra Medical University, Yoga Brotherhood, etc.
He has taught workshops and Teacher Training programs in the US at the Esalen Institute, Loyola Marymount University, YogaWorks, the Himalayan Institute, the Chicago Yoga Center, and many others. He is a certified teacher with the Yoga Alliance at the E-RYT-500 (500 hour) level, the highest certification level offered.
I qualified as a yoga teacher with the Irish Yoga Association in 1995. My practice has evolved continuously through my studies with teachers such as Sama Fabian, Yogacharya Venkatesh and Hema, Sraddhalu Ranade, Dr. Vinayachandra, Dr Anuradha Choudry, Aloka Marti (ATB) - to name just a few and through contact with all my students. I have been fortunate enough to Tutor on the IYA Yoga Teacher Training Course and to have been involved with the European Union of Yoga for many years. My aspiration is to continuously honour the authenticity of the yoga tradition.
Sri. Sajan Sankaran
Sajan was introduced to Indic knowledge systems through the Chinmaya Mission in his childhood, and his journey on the path of yoga has been deepened since 2004 through HH Sri Sri Ravi Shankar & the Art of Living Foundation. He is also a trained yoga instructor from the S-VYASA Yoga University. While doing his B.Tech from IIT Bombay, he discovered a deep connection with the Dhrupad music tradition, which seemed to be a direct application of the principles of Yoga. He felt an urge to learn it in detail, & to his good fortune, he was accepted as a full time disciple of renowned Dhrupad Gurus - the Gundecha Brothers. He spent the larger part of 8 years as a resident student of their Bhopal Gurukul. He now performs and teaches Dhrupad actively, and works on various other artistic and academic projects. While Sajan continues his Dhrupad training through regular visits to the Gurukul, he started ‘Svara Yog’ to formally bring his two core areas of interest (Dhrupad and Yoga) onto a common ground, deepen his own engagement with it, and also share it with others.
Smt. Tara Kini
Tara Kini is an independent consultant in Education and Music and works with several reputed institutions in Bangalore, Andhra Pradesh, Delhi and Ahmedabad, developing curriculum, and training teachers and trainers. Tara is an advisor to the Shankar Mahadevan Music Academy.
Tara has trained intensively in Hindustani classical music, from the late Shri Narayan Rao Patwardhan, Smt. Mira Khirwadkar Deshpande, and the late Pandit Rama Rao V. Naik. She is currently training in Khayal from Smt Lalith J Rao, and in Dhrupad from Padmashree Gundecha Brothers.
Tara is the founder director of a music collective called Sunaad that has presented over eighty shows that demystify classical music.
Rev. Lama Jacquelyn Zoe DeBray
Writer, Counselor, Professor, Contemplative. For many of the last 25, since participating in the traditional Tibetan 3-year retreat, I've spend praying and meditating in solitary retreat. For a few years, some years past, I was director of KTTG, a Tibetan Buddhist organization in Crestone, CO.
Rev. Chak Ngodup Tsering Burkhar
Chak Ngodup Tsering Burkhar was born in 1953 to a nomadic family near Mount Kailash in Western Tibet. In 1959 he escaped to Nepal with his parents and brother and from there went to Dharamsala, India in 1967. After his basic education in Buddhist teachings and English language, he has served as Translator to His Holiness the 16th Gyalwang Karmapa and other prominent Tibetan Buddhist Lineage Gurus for more than 45 years. He has traveled all over the world as a translator as well as participated in many dialogues and discussions on Buddhist teachings and practice.
Yogacharya Dr. Ananda Balayogi Bhavanani is Director of the Centre for Yoga Therapy Education and Research (CYTER), and Professor of Yoga therapy at the Sri Balaji Vidyapeeth University, Pondicherry (www.sbvu.ac.in).
He is also Chairman of the International Centre for Yoga Education and Research at Ananda Ashram, Pondicherry, India (www.icyer.com) and Yoganjali Natyalayam, the premier institute of Yoga and Carnatic Music and Bharatanatyam in Pondicherry (www.rishiculture.in). He is son and successor of the internationally acclaimed Yoga team of Yogamaharishi Dr. Swami Gitananda Giri Guru Maharaj and Yogacharini Kalaimamani Ammaji, Smt Meenakshi Devi Bhavanani.
He is a Gold Medallist in Medical Studies (MBBS) with postgraduate diplomas in both Family Health (PGDFH) as well as Yoga (PGDY) and the Advanced Diploma in Yoga under his illustrious parents in 1991-93. A Fellow of the Indian Academy of Yoga, he has authored 19 DVDs and 23 books on Yoga as well as published more than two hundred papers, compilations and abstracts on Yoga and Yoga research in National and International Journals. His literary works have more than1450 Citations, with an with an h-Index of 24 and an i10-Index of 48.. In addition, he is a Classical Indian Vocalist, Percussionist, Music Composer and Choreographer of Indian Classical Dance.
He is an Honorary International Advisor to the International Association of Yoga Therapists (www.iayt.org), the Australasian Association of Yoga Therapists (www.yogatherapy.org.au), the World Yoga Foundation (www.worldyogafoundation.in) and Gitananda Yoga Associations worldwide (www.rishiculture.in).
Acharya Mangalananda is an American direct disciple of the great 20th Century woman Saint, Sri Anandamayi Ma (1896-1982) and an appointed Acharya (Teacher of her lineage) of Ma Sharanam Ashrams in India and the US. He has been associated with India since 1973 when he traveled during '73 and '74 with Ma, receiving mantra diksha directly from her, and since has lived with several great disciples of her lineage. He was sent by Swami Bhaskarananda ji (Ma's principle disciple) to help start a school in her Ashram in Omkareshwar, Central India in 2001, where he lived and taught for twelve years. For many years, he was sent by the ashram to tour Europe and the US, presenting kirtan concerts and classes. He currently lives in the San Francisco Bay Area in the US, where he continues his sadhana and seva for Ma.
Smt. Nilima Bhat: Founder-Director Shakti Leadership Nilima Bhat is a leader in the fields of Personal Mastery, Leadership, Gender Equality and Wellbeing. Coauthor of two books, Shakti Leadership and My Cancer Is Me, she is the Founder of the global Shakti Fellowship Program for women changemakers.
Sri. Vijay Bhat: Founder, Cancer Awakens and Director, Roots & Wings Vijay serves as a trusted advisor to CEO’s who face the turbulence of a ‘volatile-uncertain-complex-ambiguous’ (VUCA) world. He has pioneered cancer coaching in India with the vision “Many millions must survive; one million must thrive”.
Ms. Barkat Françoise
French woman of 63, living in Morocco since 13 years after living in the French west Indies. Have been a nurse during 25 years, exploring holistic fields of healing like Shiatsu, Reiki , Naturopathy, and being certified on that . From west indies , begin the journey on the path og Yoga 27 years ago. Have first be certified YTT 200 in 2008, by Rahi Santhanam in Bangalore. Since that moment, have understood that Yoga philosophy is so valuable for everybody, that am trying to share here what am continuasly learning from Indian culture, specially Yoga and Ayurveda. Many travels across India, alone, put me in touch to the deeper dimension of Yoga. Am now exploring the dimension of producing our own organic food, and being as much as possible in tune with Mother Earth....
Smt. Rahila Sujatha Santhanam
Rahila Sujatha Santhanam (Rahi) ji is a Psychologist and a practising Yoga-therapist and a Wellness-consultant by profession. She took her first steps in yoga at the age of 16 from the Vivekananda Kendra, Kanyakumari. Went on to do her pre doctorate research work and her teacher training from the Krishnamacharya Yoga Mandiram under the guidance of Sri Desikachar. In her capacity as a psychologist and yoga-therapist, she has worked with creating therapy modalities for differently abled children. Has focused on working with women, sportspeople, dancers and in the Army milieu. Rahi ji travels extensively and is involved in training yoga teachers at home and abroad through talks, workshops and YTTs. She is also involved in bringing people together through being an integral part of eco- spiritual tourism.
Leigh is the founder of Living Yoga with Leigh, which leads retreats, teacher trainings and immersions in Singapore and around the world. She has been teaching Yoga for almost 10 years, and along the way, learned to understand and, more importantly, respect anatomical differences. Because of that, she believes in creating safe spaces that empower practitioners to step into their intuitive wisdom and practise according to their inner alignment — asanas that look right on the outside may not necessarily feel so within. Having been healed by an Ayurvedic doctor when she was a sickly child, Leigh is deeply influenced by the teachings of Ayurveda, as well as by her ongoing studies with Nitya Mohan, whose father A.G. Mohan is a long-time student of revered Ayurvedic healer and yoga master Sri Tirumalai Krishnamacharya. Her classes are embodied, intuitive and poetic, and a reflection of her life on and off the mat. She sees life to be the greatest teacher, with every moment serving as an opportunity to connect to our highest selves, and to live with intention, compassion and integrity.
Patricia Meyer came into contact with yoga during her first pregnancy, thanks to the wonderful books by the French doctor F. Leboyer. After following training courses, studying and practising with Masters from different traditions and schools, she has been sharing her experience – still in evolution - teaching hatha yoga to little groups of students for almost thirty years now, referring mainly to the teachings of Śri Śri Śri Satchidananda, known as “the Silent Yogi of Madras”, and his disciple, W. Tirak Ruta. She studied with Dr. M.V. Bhole and more recently with Chandra Klee, a pupil of the Masters Śri T. Krishnamacharya and Śri T.K.V. Desikachar, taking a particular interest in the curative approach of yoga. In 1999 in San Felice, just outside Milan, she founded Yoga Shankara, a meeting space devoted to the study, sharing and spread of yoga, hosting seminars on philosophy, mantras, psychology of yoga, meditation, Ayurveda and the classical art and culture of India, led by excellent teachers, including Lama Ringu Tulku Rinpoche, Dr. Anuradha Choudry and Dr. Vinayachandra Banavaty.
Dr. Bhaswati Bhattacharya is a Harvard-educated, licensed and board-certified MD physician trained in family medicine and preventive medicine, dividing her time between Manhattan, Paris, and Benaras. She is also a senior Fulbright Scholar, an awarded educator, best-selling author, and published scientist trained in pharmacology (UPenn) & neuroscience (Columbia Univ), public health (Harvard Univ), community medicine (Mt.Sinai-NYU), nutrition (Columbia Univ-IIN), and Ayurveda. Since 2003, she serves as Clinical Asst Professor in the Dept of Medicine at Weill Cornell Medical College in New York. Her work at The DINacharya Institute brings the wisdom and science of authentic ancient medicines such as Ayurveda back to the hands and hearts of the people. She completed a mid-career PhD in ancient Indian chemistry, Ayurvedic pharmaceutics, and pharmacology (Rasa Shastra & Bhaisajya Kalpana) from the prestigious Banaras Hindu University in India, focusing her award-winning PhD thesis on poly-herbal-mineral formulations for diabetes. She was selected as a 2018-2023 Fulbright Specialist in Public Health, specializing in Integrative Medicine and and continues studying with authentic wisemen. The Discovery Channel documentary Healers: Journey into Ayurveda features her work. Her book Everyday Ayurveda is a national bestseller published by Penguin Random House.
Auroshikha is an upcoming author, a wellness consultant and an artist pursuing Performing Arts from NYU Tisch.
Dr. Mala Kapadia, Professor, Resident Mentor and Director, Centre for Well-being & Wellness at Rashtram School of Public Leadership. My academic and career have been around Psychology, Human Resources, Yoga and Ayurveda. I have authored a book on Emotional Intelligence with Indic perspective and taught courses at Executive MBA globally. Currently working on a book on Bhartiya Manasa Shastra. Education Psychology has been an area of research.
Sujata Ameya is a relationship therapist and self-actualization coach, who enables individuals to awaken to their own truth, goodness and beauty, in relationships that seem challenging. Sujata is the author of “When the Beloved Calls”, a book of poems. based on her personal experience. Sujata has an M.Phil. in Clinical Psychology from the National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences, and has maintained a private practice in Hyderabad, India for 30 years. Using transpersonal and integrative therapies, Sujata has helped over 14000 clients to ‘work with conflict as a catalyst for self-discovery’, and to ‘journey through heartbreak as a path to self-actualization’. Having trained abroad in Past-life Therapy, Kinesiology, Hypnotherapy and Heal Your Life, Sujata seamlessly blends modern western psychology with ancient eastern wisdom. She is gifted in the art of connecting dots & people, and teaching complex concepts through experiential activities.
Dr. Mayur V Kaku is the Head of Neurosurgery Department at Vasavi Hospital, Bengaluru. He completed his Neurosurgery training at National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences (NIMHANS), Bangalore. He is expert in Minimally Invasive Brain and Spine surgery and has special interest in Endoscopic and Pediatric Neurosurgery. He is active member of Neurological Society of India (NSI), American Association of Neurological Surgeons (AANS) and is trained by World Federation of Neurosurgical Societies (WFNS) in Stereotactic Radiosurgery for Brain and Spine. He is practicing yoga for the last 20 years and is certified and practicing Yoga Therapist too.
Dr Rob is a yoga practitioner for nearly 25 years and a Doctor of Chiropractic. He has been helping people move towards health since 2000 and is the founder of More Than Anatomy. This is an online resource for teachers of yoga who want to learn about the human body in relation to yoga.
Shriram Sarvotham, PhD, E-RYT-500, has been practicing yoga since childhood and teaching yoga for over three decades. He studied with many renowned teachers including Swami Bodhananda, Yogacharya Srivatsa Ramaswami, Yogacharya Sri R. Subramaniam, Yogashiromani Krishan Verma, and Sri Sri Ravi Shankar ji. Shriram’s prime focus is to share authentic and holistic yoga practices that are rooted in classic yoga texts. He has taught over 300 workshops and retreats all over the USA, led numerous mega-yogathon events, and has given lectures and demonstrations at prestigious yoga conferences. Shriram is a co-founder and Director of the EkaShri Schools of Yoga. He is also a faculty of Yoga Teacher Training programs for several yoga institutions and studios, including Yoga Bharati, a branch of SVYASA Bangalore. Shriram is a recipient of the “Exemplary Service Award in Yoga” given by the Consulate General of India, and the “Yoga Service Award” given by ISKCON. Shriram did his Bachelors degree in Electrical Engineering from IIT Madras followed by PhD from Rice University in Houston, Texas. He works in the tech industry as a Senior Scientist in San Francisco Bay Area, California.
Diplomat turned Yog Guru: Chandra Mohan Bhandari, a former Ambassdor of India, an Honorary Professor of Opole Polytech University, Poland, and an International Yog Grand Master, has had a brilliant educational career. He got his Master in Physics degree from I.I.T., Kanpur in 1970 and joined the Indian Foreign Service in 1974. Though he is widely travelled overseas because of his diplomatic career, he throughout his career held his personal life closely wedded to Vedic Sciences. He studied Vedic texts in his free time and through his own experiences after sustained practice of the many Yogic Kriyas, quantified deep holistic health and wellness benefits besides spiritual realizations. This was clearly visible in his public personality, which deeply influenced public opinion about holistic health and wellness advantages from living by Yog and Ayurved sciences. This led C.M. Bhandari to establish the Institute of Vedic Sciences at his Devamber Dham Arogya Ashram in Kashipur in February 2020. Before that, he had established a small scale Devamber Arogya Dham Ashram in June 2012 in his native village Mawra in Ranikhet Tehsil of Almora district in Uttarakhand. C.M. Bhandari has designed five modules of 10 hours each for practical experiences of benefits from Yog and Ayurved Sciences.
Valerie Hwang is an Ayurvedic Health Counselor and yoga nidra teacher based in Long Beach, California. Guided by the ancient wisdom of Ayurveda, her mission is to help people stay healthy so that not only can they live a life of peace and joy, but so that they can pursue their higher purpose with grace and ease. Valerie uses simple diet, lifestyle, and 5-sense therapies to promote healing and vitality in the mind and body. She has studied Ayurvedic Nutrition and Culinary Education under Bhagavat Life by Divya Alter and greatly enjoys applying Ayurvedic wisdom to cooking and eating for balance and health.
Vladimir Yatsenko, MA in Sanskrit language and literature, General and Theoretical Linguistics, PhD in Indian Philosophy, doing research in the field of Vedic and Vedantic Studies, Indian Philosophy, Philosophy of Language and Integral Yoga Psychology. He was a visiting Professor of Sanskrit and Integral Studies at Auro University, Surat, and a facilitator at University of Human Unity project at Auroville, Indian Psychology Institute in Pondicherry, International Centre of Integral Studies in New Dehli and SACAR in Pondicherry. At present he is a visiting member at Sri Aurobindo Integral Life Center, Fountain Inn, USA.
Swamini Pramananda (affectionately known as Ammaji) is the Spiritual Leader and Visionary behind the organization, Purna Vidya, based in Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu. While still a teenager, Ammaji lived in a traditional gurukulam and studied Advaita Vedanta (the Non-dual teaching tradition of India) for three years with her first teacher, Swami Dayananda Sarawati. Ammaji eventually became a monk and spiritual teacher herself. For the past over 40years, she has been sharing the vision of Oneness and Harmony with seekers around the world. Swamini Pramananda is one of those rare teachers who understand the intensity and challenges of the Spiritual journey, and can communicate these ancient teachings in a way that is both relevant and meaningful for the modern spiritual seeker. Swamini Pramananda is a Vedanta teacher and a teacher of teachers as well as a Sanskrit scholar. Her scholarship is grounded in these timeless teachings as well as her direct experience of the truth they reveal. As a result, she has become one of the clearest and most eloquent teachers of the Vedic vision of Oneness and Happiness you will find in the world today.
Rutger Kortenhorst is a wellbeing and practical philosophy teacher for teenagers (12-18). A Sanskrit teacher for 5-12 year old age group. Passionate about the great outdoors - cycling and walking. Teaching adults Sanskrit and Vedanta philosophy during the evening and the weekend. Website https://sanskrit.ie for wellbeing with Bhagavad Gita in colour-coded Sanskrit and translation and sung by Gaiea. Eesha Upanishad is being uploaded this summer. Writing Sanskrit textbooks for children in the west to help them learn. A lot of this done through music.
Siddhant Ghosh is the founder of a Nationalized NGO, working on rehabilitation, social upliftment and acceptance of girl children effected in trafficking, orphan children, children and young adult with Mental retardation, Autism and Cerebral Palsy and grand parents left on streets by their own. My Faith in GITA has taught me the need to work for social upliftment of people with disadvantages, as to be the primary source of ultimate happiness, something we all individual seek in life.
Omkar, with a background of Bachelors & Master’s degree in Yoga from the prestigious SVYASA Yoga University, has nearly 2 decades of experience in training and teaching Yoga. He is loved and respected by his students and clients for the gifts he brings to their professional and personal lives as a Yoga teacher, Therapist, Counsellor, Coach and a Stress management consultant. Omkar travels widely conducting workshops, seminars, retreats etc. on both philosophical and practical aspects of Yoga including meditation and guided relaxation.
Mirabelle D’Cunha supports committed yoga lovers to savour the luxury of inner experience and find purpose, pleasure and joy in life through breath. She provides a loving space for them to unplug from urgency, into deep trust and allowing. Her signature offerings are Sadhana Club - an online sanctuary that brings grace, clarity, and community to yoga teachers and practitioners - as well as her Breathe into a Radiant You private mentoring program for healing through breath. She also hosted the world's 1st Bhakti Yoga Summit in 2020 and 1st Ever Pranayama Summit in 2021 which was endorsed by The Chopra Foundation. Mirabelle is in an intimate relationship with yoga as a breath-ing experience . She has studied with swamis (monks) and teachers from the Sivananda Saraswati lineage and at Mumbai University. Mirabelle has taught at yoga ashrams and studios in India, the USA, Canada, Bahamas, Bermuda, and the Cayman Islands and is a guest teacher on yoga teacher training on pranayama, bhakti yoga, and the deeper nuances of yoga as a living practice. She has been a speaker and panelist and teacher for Yoga Alliance Continuing Education Programs. Whether in an individual or group session, corporate or yoga teacher training space, gentle allowing, compassion and intimacy with breath are at the heart of how Mirabelle approaches all of her work in this world.
Ganesh Giri is from New Delhi, India. Presently stays in Japan. Learned yoga from childhood at various Ashrams in Rishikesh and Bali Indonesia. Teaching Yoga & Meditation in Japan for 12 years. Registered Yoga Master at Wakayama Prefecture Board of Education Japan.
Three extraordinary teachers mentored Raghu Ananthanarayanan when in very difficult phases of his life, namely; J Krishnamurti, Yogacharya Krishnamacharya and Pulin K Garg. He was intimately involved with them for more than a decade from his late twenties. This engagement not only transformed him, it evoked from him his service orientation, his sadhana. His work revolves around helping individuals, groups and organizations discover their dharma, and become the best they can be. This he believes aligns with his own personal sadhana. Formally trained as an engineer with an MS in Bio-Medical Engineering from IIT, Madras, he has been in immersive involvement in questions of human life. In academic areas, he has been Cofounder of the Sumedhas Academy of Human Context since 1995, and of the Barefoot Academy of Governance with TISS since 2012. He is one of the Directors of the Centre for Consciousness and Inner Transformation, an initiative of Indic Academy. As Director of Flame Tao Knoware Pvt Ltd Raghu spans the commercial world of consulting by helping redesign the client organization for greater alignment and synergy. Raghu has authored several books: Learning Through Yoga, The Totally Aligned Organization, Leadership Dharma, Arjuna the Timeless Metaphor, Organizational Development and Alignment: The Tensegrity Mandala (as co-author with Gagandeep Singh). Currently his wife Sashi and he, donning their role as Chief Mentors are working on nurturing people on a Sacred Quest at Ritambhara Ashram, situated in the beautiful Nilagiris.
Kanniks Kannikeswaran is a visionary musician, composer, music educator and writer with several recordings, productions and scores to his credit. Often referred to as 'The Magical Musician from Madras' Kanniks' skill lies in his ability to create captivating music easily accessible to a broad audience base, blending complex features of diverse World Music forms. All of Kanniks' projects are consistent with his vision of building community through the celebration of threads of commonality between diverse peoples and cultures. Kanniks is a recent recipient of the prestigious McKnight Visiting Artist Fellowship (Minnesota) and the Ohio Heritage Fellowship.
Kanniks is hailed as the pioneer of the Indian American choral movement. He has founded and directed Indian American community choirs in Cincinnati OH, Bethlehem PA, Houston TX and Tampa FL and created a large repertoire of choral music based on ragas.
Swami Taponidhi,as a parivrajak (wandering) sannyasin is freely spreading the message of yoga and with his vast teaching experience, intuitively simplifies the subtle and powerful techniques of yoga so as to enhance relaxation and awareness thereby allowing the participants to choose appropriately while facing the events of life and thus improve the quality of their lives.
Swami Taponidhi, after fifteen years living under the guidance of his Guru in Bihar School of Yoga, Munger, Bihar, India, is propagating and promoting the traditional goal of yoga
Krishnaphani Kesiraju is a mechanical engineering graduate, with professional qualifications in Management and Law. He has more than forty-one years of experience in industry and academia.
Currently he runs his own consulting and trading businesses. Study and research in Ancient Indian philosophical and spiritual literature is his passion. He is engaged in synthesizing ancient and modern thought on deeper aspects of life and its purpose. He is a keen student of Vedanta, Theosophy and Jiddu Krishnamurti's teachings. Krishnaphani is an invited speaker at various management and spiritual forums.
Krishnaphani Kesiraju is the Program Director at Rtambhara and the enabler for the spiritual and transcendental dimensions of holistic well-being at Rtambhara through contemporary interpretation of the content of ancient Indian Spiritual literature to make it contextual to today's living. He is instrumental in coordinating and creating the content and form of the courses offered by Rtambhara.
Ayurvedic Practitioner (AP) and Ayurveda Yoga Therapist (AYT), Myra Lewin is a professional member of the National Ayurvedic Medical Association (NAMA) and Yoga Alliance (ERYT 500). A master yogini, Myra has amassed more than 50,000 hours of Yoga teaching experience spanning 30 years of practice. She is also the author of three books, Freedom in Your Relationship with Food, Simple Ayurvedic Recipes, and Simple Ayurvedic Recipes 2, and is the host of two remarkable podcasts on holistic healing, “Everyday Ayurveda and Yoga at Hale Pule” and “Spark Your Intuition”.
Finished scriptural studies from Veda Vijnana Gurukulam, Bangalore. Post graduated from Svyasa University. Worked for the department of Indian Culture in a prestigious Institute in Guyana, S.America. Co-Founder of Samyak Yoga, an Internationally recognised Yoga School in Mysore. Presently living a peaceful life in a farm as a farmer and striving to share the serene atmosphere for well being with people in the name of VIVIKTA WELLNESS HERMITAGE. In near future the gates will be open for all to stay, rejoice and experience life to its fullest in a beautiful 8acres farmland.
Founder, Karuna/Triloka Records International Kirtan Wallah, USA. Layering traditional kirtan with instantly accessible melodies and modern instrumentation, Krishna Das has been called yogas rock star.With a remarkably soulful voice that touches the deepest chord in even the most casual listener, Krishna Das known to friends, family, and fans as simply KD has taken the call-and-response chanting out of yoga centers and into concert halls, becoming a worldwide icon and the best-selling western chant artist of all time. His album Live Ananda (released January 2012) was nominated for a Grammy in the Best New Age album category.
KD spent the late 60's traveling across the country as a student of Ram Dass, and in August 1970, he finally made the journey to India, which led him to Ram Dass own beloved guru, Neem Karoli Baba, known to most as Maharaj-ji.
Given the name Krishna Das, KD began to chant as part of following the path of Bhakti yoga, the yoga of devotion.
Kavita is a Conscious Parenting Coach. She specifically focuses on healing childhood trauma. Formerly the Editor in Chief of Cosmopolitan Middle East and HELLO! Indo-Arabia, she resigned from her career three years after her son was born. Deeply traumatised by the trials of parenting, she questioned why she found impossible what others seemingly did effortlessly. Or that is what it looked like to the world. Years of therapy and excavation led nowhere till she discovered Dr Shefali Tsabary, Oprah’s go-to for parenting. Dr Shefali said what no one had – we find it hard to parent when we don’t receive nurture as a child.
And it all made sense. Kavita’s mother has been mentally ill all her life. Being Indian, no one addressed it and no one helped her. Nurture was in short supply. After studying under Dr Shefali to be a Conscious Parenting Coach in 2020, Kavita will be starting her MA and PhD in East West Psychology in the California Institute of Integral Studies. It is her deepest intention to help parents the way no one helped hers. It is her purpose and drive to heal Childhood Trauma so we can parent our children the way every child deserves – with unconditional love, acceptance and nurture.
Anupama Das specializes in Yoga Therapy, with a certification from the IAYT - International Assn. of Yoga Therapists. She’s also a Yoga Alliance certified trainer.
Anupama had no idea about yoga when she stepped out of the advertising industry and took up studying yoga. Her journey began as a Yoga teacher, when she graduated from Krishnamacharya Yoga Mandiram’s (KYM) two and a half year Post Graduate diploma in Yoga Studies. She worked there part time as a Research Assistant as well. Since then she’s worked at a few other Yoga organizations in the capacity of a teacher, therapist and administrative head. Apart from healing people, she continues to be involved actively as a trainer, mentor and faculty in Training programs.
She’s been in the field of yoga for 18 years and teaches group classes, customised therapy sessions, chanting, yoga philosophy and conducts workshops. Her experience in this field has given her a strong conviction in the significance of the prana and the healing power of the breath.
She can teach in English, Hindi, Tamil and Bengali.
Dr. Richa Chopra, is a Masters in Child Development, holds a Doctoral Degree from the Faculty of Arts, Department of Psychology (Gauhati University) along with an Advance Diploma in Child Guidance and Counselling. As the former founding Head of the Dept. of Contemplative and Behavioural Sciences at Sri Sri University, Dr. Chopra has been a pioneer in ideating, establishing and executing a plethora of departments and global initiatives, some of which have witnessed world history. She has ideated and implemented 46 collaborative projects with various UN & Govt Agencies. Being a Sr. Art of Living International Faculty, she has lived 18 years in the Art of Living Ashram in Bengaluru & has travelled across 11 countries , transforming lives through the Happiness Program and other higher level courses. Foundation, USA funded project.
Harmony has been teaching yoga for over two decades all over the world. She has degrees in Religious Studies and Philosophy with a minor in Psychology. Harmony is a Certified Wellness Coach who helps guide people to breathe better to reduce the harmful effects of stress and anxiety so that they can experience more freedom and joy within their life.
An Author, 500-hr Certified Manasa Yoga Teacher, TV Host and Speaker, Shailaja grew up in Coimbatore, India but is now based in Malaysia. She has over twenty years of teaching experience, and is the Founder of “Mat & Beyond Yoga Studio”. She is the host of “Yoga Shakti” a TV Series on Anand TV, based in the UK with audiences in Europe and North America. She also conducts online “Asana” and “Pranayama & Dhyana” classes for students UK and USA. She has been invited to speak at several educational institutions and organizations both in Malaysia and India. Shailaja is very active on social media and since the lockdown in March 2020, she regularly hosts podcasts, “Shailaja Menon in Conversation” series on Facebook with leading personalities in India and abroad in the fields of Yoga, Ayurveda, Vedanta and the Indian Classical Arts. A passionate advocate of mental wellness, she believes in a holistic approach and raises consciousness of her students through yoga workshops, regular talks on diet and nutrition, and fosters groups that include healthy eating and hiking.
Hi, my name is Jamie from Galway in the West of Ireland. I've been working in Michelin Star kitchens all around the world for most of my career. In 2015 I launched The Holistic Chef to make a positive impact in people lives by inspiring healthier foods and lifestyle. Currently, living and cooking in the jungle of Phuket, Thailand.
Claire is an Australian born, France based yoga teacher who has been visiting India for the last 22 years almost yearly to study yoga, ayurveda, philosophy and Hindustani music. Her principal teachers have been Pattabhi Jois and his grandson Sharath Jois in Mysore, India where she has learnt the Ashtanga Yoga method (and she has their traditional Guru Shysha blessing to teach this style of yoga). Claire has also had the great honour of studying Bhakti yoga with Swami Niranjanananda and his teachers with the Bhihar School of yoga (mantra, philosophy, chanting). Claire has been playing the western silver flute for 37 years and from the last 16 years she has also been playing the Bansuri with her teacher Ravi Shankar Mishra. Claire practices Primary, Intermediate and Advanced Ashtanga Yoga asanas and has the blessing of the KPJAYI to teach both the Primary and full Intermediate Series.
Claire established Ashtanga Yoga Shala Provence (a yoga studio and student accommodation home situated in a small village between Aix en Provence and Marseille) in 2012 where she continues to teach in both French and English to a mix of local students and international visitors. Claire is Australian by nationality and lives in France with her 7 year old daughter.
Sharanya Narayanan is a Hatha Yoga teacher (guided by teachers of the Iyengar system) who is also trained in the art of Rope Mallakhamb (a rural gymnastic sport)
Founders of Carnatic Conservatory of Paris are promoting Indian culture through Music, Dance, Yoga, Bhagavad-Gita classes and Sanskrit language training. They also release Bhagavad-Gita doodle videos through Indian Embassy of Paris social media channels every Monday and by Embassy in Finland and Estonia every Friday.
CCParis has published books in multiple Indian and International languages and also the first ones to introduce Indian Music Veena and Odissi in a French Conservatory as part of curriculum. CCParis also provides credits for Carnatic learning in association with SVYASA University.
Indica Yoga, in association with Center for Soft Power, Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR), INYGMA and LifeCykul invite you to join for the closing ceremony of of the Suryathon League.
Shantala studied Sanskrit chanting and Indian scriptures from an early age as part of her family tradition and school education in Bangalore, India. She has been mentored by several Vedic scholars and teaches a growing global community of students through her online platform. Shantala is especially keen on connecting aspirants to the relevance of Vedas for personal development and to the source texts of Yoga. She is based in Brussels, Belgium.
Subba’s basic training is in engineering and business studies. For three decades he straddled the life of a banker while developing a deep personal practice of yoga and meditation. Subba has trained in the chanting of Vedas and Upanishads from when he was a child and continues to work with scholars in India on ancient texts. His fifteen years of annual practice of silence & solitude and studies of the Yoga Sutras are the main sources for his programs of meditation and self- discovery. Together with his wife Renuka, Subba runs BeingSattvaa, a top-rated wellness retreat centre in Ubud, Bali.
Eddie Stern is a Yoga instructor, author, researcher and lecturer from NYC. He has been studying Yoga during yearly trips to India since 1988.
Samanta Duggal, a Yoga , Movement therapist and bodyworker for the last 20 years , I inculcate Vedic chanting , sound healing , Nlp coaching , somatic healing in my scope of work . I lead retreats , workshops pan India and globally.
Smt. Nrithya Jagannathan, Director, KYM Institute of Yoga Studies, Krishnamacharya Yoga Mandiram, a student of Sri TKV Desikachar with over 18 years of experience. Nrithya Jagannathan is also the Editor-in-chief of KYM’s quarterly e-journal on Yoga and Yoga Cikitsa. A life member of the Indian Yoga Association, Nrithya is a member of the Standing Academic Accreditation committee of the Indian Yoga Association as well. She has traveled extensively representing the KYM at numerous events/seminars/workshops across the world. Nrithya is trained in Vedic chanting as well. She is C-IAYT as well as ERYT-500 and YACEP. She is also Bharatanatyam dancer, teacher and choreographer, with many awards to her credit.
Nitesh Batra is the founder of The Mindful Initiative and Ashtanga Yoga Sadhna in Bangalore. He has been practicing Yoga since 2006. He also hosts The Mindful Initiative Podcast. Prior to teaching Yoga, Nitesh worked in corporate world for 10 years. He produced two award-winning Feature films in Hindi and Assamese. Since 2010, Nitesh has learnt Yoga Asana and Pranayama from Sh. Sharath Jois. He has learnt Yoga Philosophy from Sh. Indira and AG Mohan and Yogic Meditation practices from Kaivalyadhama, Pune. Nitesh is currently pursuing a 5-year study program of Buddhism under the tutelage of Geshe Tenzin Namdak. Nitesh graduated with a dual Bachelors and Master Degrees from University of Maryland, College Park and completed his MBA from Indian School of Business, Hyderabad. He completed his Certificate Program in Compassion Cultivation Training from Stanford Medical School’s Center of Compassion and Research in Education (CCARE).
Yogashree N. V. Raghuram, Chairman and Spiritual Founder of Yoga Bharati, has been a student of yoga and spirituality from his younger days. Ever since, he has devoted his life to a cause he strongly believes in the spread of holistic approach to yoga and spiritual knowledge all over the world. As an international ambassador for SVYASA, Raghuram ji has been traveling the globe for past 3 decades guiding seekers and researchers in the field of yoga. Widely popular among his students, he is known for his wit, wisdom and generosity in his teachings.
Yogi Trupta has been teaching Yoga since 2004. Over the last two decades he has conducted hundreds of Yoga Teacher Training Courses around the world, training and educating thousands of students. Major focus of Trupta’s teachings is on Asana, Yoga Philosophy, Meditation and Pranayama in Hatha and Vinyasa styles. Every year he travels to France, Japan, Bali and Romania to conduct Yoga courses and workshops. With his deep insights and innovation, he is also the founder of new school of practice called ‘Snehayoga’ – where he combines the wisdom of Yoga and Ayurveda especially by applying natural oils in the practice of yoga. Trupta’s yoga journey started at the age of fifteen with his father and which was nourished by his teacher Dr. Ramachandra Bhat in Veda Vijnana Gurukulam, a place dedicated for ancient yogic learning system. He holds a bachelor’s degree and Post Graduate Diploma in Yoga Therapy from Svyasa Yoga University, Bangalore. He has studied with great teachers from Iyengar and Shivanada schools.
Indira is a corporate professional turned Yoga Teacher. She was introduced to Yoga in 2007 in a temple as part of the community service by a selfless yogi who conducted a 10 day Yoga course. She has taken her formal yoga education from SVYASA and a1000 Yoga. Now she is an ERYT 500 and also a qualified prenatal yoga teacher. Currently conducting Yoga teacher training courses in Mysore at Yogasattwa. Over time, she has developed her interest in Indian philosophies such as Vedanta also.
Yogrishi Sai is an accomplished Yoga Therapist-Scholar-Teacher belonging to the lineage of legendary yoga master Sri Krishnamacharya.
Sai founded HOJO Yoga, a reputed and thriving holistic centre in Bangalore in 2015. He Founded Yogrishi Sai Foundation in March 2020 during the Covid-19 Lockdown to deliver yoga sessions Live online.
He holds a Masters Degree in Yoga Therapy from world-renowned Swami Vivekananda Yoga University and holds the most coveted 500-hour Teacher Training Certificate from Krishnamacharya Yoga Mandiram (KYM), foremost authority in yoga therapy in the world.
He is a professional member of Indian Yoga Association (IYA)
Teacher to Kids, Students, Home makers, Office goers, teachers, CEOs, Doctors and other professionals in India, Australia, UK, UAE, Iraq, Turkey, Singapore, Philippines, South Africa and USA
Founder and director of Tapovan Open University of Yoga & Ayurveda, a bridge between East and West
Inspired by Gandhi, Tagore, La Mère, Sri Aurobindo and Yehudi Menuhin
Kiran Vyas is from Gujarat in India. A former student of the Sri Aurobindo International Education Center in Pondicherry, he founded three experimental schools with his father who was one of Mahatma Gandhi's closest collaborators.
Kiran Vyas then chose France to promote the influence of this "science of life" that is Ayurveda.
His scientific training, his pedagogical sense, his keen interest in the evolution of body and mind as well as his creativity led him to develop Tapovan into an "Open University" open to all, promoting "interdisciplinary" exchanges and “intercultural”.
Kiran Vyas was the precursor of Ayurveda in Europe; it was he who introduced it in the early 80s, when no one yet knew what Ayurveda was. He is recognized as a major player in the teaching of this art of living in the service of well-being and personal development, this nearly forty years. Today, in Tapovan Paris or Normandy, the Kiran Vyas team invites you to a privileged encounter with yourself.
Chairman and Spiritual Founder of Yoga Bharati
Yogashree N. V. Raghuram, Chairman and Spiritual Founder of Yoga Bharati, has been a student of yoga and spirituality from his younger days. Ever since, he has devoted his life to a cause he strongly believes in the spread of holistic approach to yoga and spiritual knowledge all over the world. As an international ambassador for SVYASA, Raghuram ji has been traveling the globe for past 3 decades guiding seekers and researchers in the field of yoga. Widely popular among his students, he is known for his wit, wisdom and generosity in his teachings.
