Episode: 8

Indian men & American yoga studios with Ashish Arora

Welcome to Episode 8 of Let’s Talk Yoga! 

In this episode, I talk to a good friend of mine, Ashish Arora. We chat about why there aren’t too many Indian male yoga teachers out here in the US, the struggles of yoga teachers to make ends meet, and how this struggle brings about burnout, cultural appropriation and how we as yoga teachers can make our classes more male population friendly.

Ashish Arora is one of the few Indian male yoga teachers out here in the US. He grew up in India with yogic philosophies, listening, and reading Indian scriptures and epics. He had briefly practiced asana in school. It was in January 2015 when he had asana practice again in his office gym while working at Nintendo. 

He also shares his story on how he got laid off his high-paying corporate job which paved the way for him to become a full-time yoga teacher. He then goes on to talk about his take on the cultural appropriation of yoga and how he moves on from discrimination as a male yoga teacher from another country. Ashish currently lives in Seattle with his family.

Listen up, male yoga teachers. I hope you find this conversation insightful.

Episode Highlights: 

  • Ashish’s decision to become a full-time male yoga teacher 
  • The effects of the pandemic in Ashish’s yoga teaching 
  • Getting used to Zoom yoga 
  • Earning a living as a yoga teacher causes burnout 
  • Why is yoga considered a man’s practice? 
  • How to bring more men to your yoga classes 
  • What is and what isn’t yoga? 
  • Ashish’s take on discrimination and cultural appropriation in yoga 

Connect with Ashish Arora: 

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Featured Guests

Ashish Arora

Ashish grew up in India where he briefly practiced asana in school. He didn’t practice asana again till early 2015 in his office gym while working at Nintendo. After spending 16 years working as an engineer in the Computer and video game industry, he decided to quit a career with a six-figure income and move full time into practicing and teaching yoga. While the asana practice came to him much later, he grew up with yogic philosophies, listening and reading to the Indian scriptures and epics. Ashish teaches with a smile and brings his fun personality to his teaching. He lives in the Seattle area with his family and teaches at multiple studios across the city.

 


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