We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Vijaya Lakshmi a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I am a world renowned Indian classical dancer, who specializes in Mohiniyattam, a south India graceful dance form. Besides a dancer, I’m also a speaker, writer, actress, feminist and singer. I come from a family of traditional Indian classical artistes, with a rich background in dance, music and theatre. It was very natural for me to take to dance, as my mother is a legendary Indian classical dancer and also my Guru.

I set up an organization called The Mohiniyattam Institute (TMI) in LA few years ago, to educate America about Mohiniyattam and make people aware of the beauty and relevance of this traditional Indian classical dance form. TMI also highlights its healing, therapeutic & empowering qualities, for women, especially underserved, marginalized women in society.

TMI fulfills these objectives through performances, teaching classes, public speaking and publishing of articles. TMI uses the greatest strength of Mohiniyattam, which is its universal resonance and appeal to women. It speaks to all women, regardless of age, experience, race, background, ethnicity and training, as it quintessentially deals with femininity and its essence. The dance form is a powerful tool, which offers a wonderful opportunity to all women, to express themselves freely and connect with the power of their own femininity and experience it, besides contributing in a significant way towards their overall wellness. The other incidental benefits of practicing Mohiniyattam, is that it contributes towards youthfulness and has anti-ageing qualities for women.

We are a unique organization, that goes beyond merely propagating a traditional Indian dance form. Our driving philosophy is women’s empowerment and is passionately involved with raising social awareness about women’s issues. Americans, including the Indian community, is largely only familiar with Bharatanatyam, another Indian dance form or Bollywood dance. So by not being aware of the beauty & power of Mohiniyattam, they are greatly missing out on this dance form. Mohiniyattam provides a beautiful opportunity for the market, filling a gap. Competitors do not serve marginalized women, which is where our organization stands to contribute.

Is there mission driving your creative journey?

My mission is to use the dance form of Mohiniyattam, as a tool to enable women, across all backgrounds, to discover and connect with the inherent power of their own femininity. That as women, they are not aware of their own phenomenal potential and ability to manifest their dreams by means of their potent creative expression. The sooner a woman awakened to her intrinsic power, the earlier she can set in motion and accomplish the fulfillment of her dreams and aspirations. A major part of my mission, is to also make women aware, of social concepts and practices, plaguing society, which casts a very detrimental impact on the rights and status of women. That it was also critically important, to not be curtailed by societal, familial or religious norms and dictates and for women to express themselves freely and fearlessly. Finally, that there is much more to being a woman, than her physical attributes and to fully comprehend, the meaning and power of femininity.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

The most rewarding aspect of being an artist or creative for me, is when I get the opportunity to share the beauty and power of the dance that I do, namely Mohiniyattam with diverse audiences. It is deeply fulfilling, when the dance form resonates with all women, regardless of their age, background, experience or knowledge. It reaffirms my faith in the universal power of art to connect, unify, heal and empower. It also gives me great joy, when during the course of my teaching the dance form, students feel greatly inspired, joyous, empowered and motivated. It is also extremely gratifying, when I conduct workshops for women, who are underprivileged, underserved, marginalized women, who are greatly impacted by it and find it to be immensely healing, therapeutic and empowering. I feel happy that I have the opportunity to touch people’s lives, by sharing my art.

Contact Info:

• Website: vijayalakshmi.net ; themohiniyattaminstitute.com
• Instagram: vijayalakshmi_tmi
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/people/The-Mohiniyattam-Institute/100063633073831/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/vijaya-lakshmi-3365b41b8
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@vijayalakshmi5641/videos ; https://youtube.com/@VijayaLakshmi-wq2fr

Image Credits
Eddy Wein Girish Modi Venkatesh Chakravarthy Khachak Studios