#76 – Keen on Yoga Podcast with Protima Rodrigues

Protima Rodrigues is the founder of True Bay India - India’s first homegrown Ashtanga Yoga Workshop and Retreat Organiser, bringing top International Ashtanga yoga teachers to India, since January 2019.  Protima creates awareness as a yoga practitioner, on mental health, social justice, inclusivity, equality, diversity and believes that, yoga is for all, devoid of any barriers. She discovered Ashtanga Yoga in early 2015, in a chance last-minute plan, to go to a Himalayan Ashtanga Yoga retreat. She was a Vice-President in a Private Equity Company at the time. She connected with the practice deeply and fell in love with it. The practice in tandem with the guidance of her teachers, helped her heal, manage her stressful job better and connected her, to her true self. Through the course of the journey of the practice, as she went through her personal and professional transformation, she would travel to study from India, ironic as it sounds from the Land of Yoga, with teachers in North America. This was the seed that led her to eventually founding True Bay India - the frustration of not having access to senior teachers of the ashtanga tradition in India, coupled with the fact, that the few seasonal retreats or workshops that used to happen in India, were primarily meant for the western audience (where Indians were not a part nor particularly welcome). Protima felt that there was a whole set of Indian practitioners who were being denied the opportunity to learn from senior teachers, and that not everyone in India, had the privilege to travel. Most importantly, she wanted more people to experience the transformative practice of Ashtanga Yoga so it could enrich their lives, as it did to hers. As someone who has high-functioning depression, Ashtanga Yoga in conjunction with CBT and medication, helped in a significant way with the healing process. The lessons on the mat, breath and the mindfulness aspect of Ashtanga Yoga are those that she finds transformative and appreciates why it is called a “moving meditation”. True Bay India is the first platform in India, to focus on Premium Ashtanga Yoga Workshops & Retreats with the purpose of making Ashtanga Yoga & its Teachers more available to practitioners in India; something that was not the case when Protima discovered it. True Bay India is actively working with teachers and yoga seekers in building this Sangha (community) in India. True Bay India is an independent Indian (POC) woman-owned small business, and is in no way, affiliated to any institution, religion, race, caste, nationality or gender. True Bay India is committed to doing its part in making our community, more inclusive and accessible in India through its Yoga Outreach Program. Truth, Transparency and Trust are what is at the core of her being. True Bay India stands for these principles. True for Satya or truth and Bay for Bombay (Mumbai). True Bay is a solo, POC, woman-owned small business, based in Mumbai, India. https://www.truebayindia.com/our-story Website: https://www.truebayindia.com Instagram: @truebayindia