New Delhi: Over 60 women experts, educators, researchers and entrepreneurs from across India were recognized and felicitated at the Teen Murti Bhavan in New Delhi for their exemplary work in the field of Yoga on Dec 11. The ceremony was organized by Vindhya Shiksha Prachar Samiti (VISHIPSA) and EduGLife supported by Morarji Desai National Institute of Yoga (Ministry of AYUSH, Govt of India). The Chief Guests, Smt. Vijaya Rahatkar (National Secretary, BJP, and Former National President of BJP Mahila Morcha), Dr Ishwar V. Basava Reddy (Director, MDNIY) commended the unique awards that aimed to encourage the social contribution of women to the field.
Luvena Rangel, Bangalore based Yoga educator and international speaker, founder of The Curvy Yogi and State President of WICCI (Women’s Indian Chamber of Commerce & Industry) Karnataka Yoga Council represented South India at the prestigious event and received the Patanjali Award for Yoga Institutions. The award recognizes her contribution to the field and promotion of yoga and Ayurveda in Karnataka, India and abroad, as well as to strengthen the financial stability of yoga teachers in the State. Her fearless take on key challenges on behalf of Indian yoga teachers on the international platform was particularly noted and acknowledged.
In her presentation at the event, Ms Rangel succinctly placed forward the issues faced by Yoga teachers in the wake of the pandemic and highlighted their substandard levels of income as freelancers and breadwinners in single-income families. Her key industry-linked projects include proposing minimum wage and other systemic benefits to Yoga teachers to help them support their families as well as deepen their study to serve the community better. Her personal plea was a call for active citizens to value Indian culture and heritage by preserving the authenticity of yoga and Ayurveda, especially on international platforms and to take indigenous Indian yoga & Ayurveda teachers into the global discourse.
The Shivani award for Lifetime Achievement in yoga was conferred upon Dr R. Nagarathna, Director and Co-Founder of S-VYASA, Bangalore. Other awards at the ceremony included the Gargi award for special research, the Yogini award for long-time practitioners and the Maitrayi award for well-wishers of yoga. Seven high calibre members of the Karnataka Yoga Council and the state – Anshu Vyas Seetharaman, Komal S, Meera Narayanan, Pragya Bhatt, Sowmya Ayyar and Sugandha Singhal – also received various awards making Karnataka the top award recipient.
Luvena’s brand and business, The Curvy Yogi, is a body-positive and inclusive source of traditional & classical yoga, meditation and Ayurveda wisdom, of education and practices straight from the source. Her study programs & teacher training modules are well attended by students from around the world and her fierce views on less spoken socio-political issues in the Yoga Industry Complex are well respected. She can be reached on Facebook.com/curvyyogime and instagram.com/curvyyogime.
