The Impressive Empress Podcast

Ep 19 Mindset, Mediation & Mental Health with Dr. Srimathy Kesan

Dr. Srimathy Kesan, Founder & CEO of a leading Science and Technology incubator- “Space Kidz India” (SKI), is helping children reach out to the stars, quite literally. Launched in 2011, Space Kidz India has designed and pioneered multiple programs that are aimed at creating the next generation of scientific thinkers in India.
Driven with a mission to disrupt the mundanity of the Indian education system, Dr. Srimathy has broken ground in a hitherto uncharted avenue called “Space Education” through her unique programs, aimed at grooming India’s future scientists. Her ultimate goal is to lay the foundation for a World-renowned Space University with a manufacturing port in India.
In this episode, I talk to Srimathy about Space Kidz India but more importantly about Mindset, Mediation & Mental Health.
 

Ep. 18: Divinity, Peace & Holistic Wellbeing with Prema Mysore

Our guest for the day is Ms. Prema Mysore - A highly motivated leader, dedicated as an international Ambassador & Advocate for Rishi Tradition based on Vedas & Vedic Literatures. She loves to travel & propagate the Universal, Eternal & All encompassing messages of Rishi Tradition to humankind all over the world. Prema considers herself to be very fortunate to have the opportunity to be an educator & proponent of Rishi’s Teachings for Divine Life (Overall individual health and wellness), Ideal Nation and Universal Peace. 
She is considered a well-known Rishicare Expert & Rishiyog Master – teaching online, offline and propagating it globally.
She is a recipient of the Mahatma Gandhi Leadership Award at the House of Commons, UK in 2019.
To preserve, research, document, teach, educate, empower, enrich, and disseminate the wisdom of the Rishi tradition, she has founded several organizations with a vision to re- establish the authentic and rich heritage, wisdom, and knowledge of Sages (Rishis) and Seers through healthcare, research, and publication, in every fabric of society. 
Prema's life is fully devoted & dedicated to fulfil the Vision & Mission of Rishipath International Foundation (Bengaluru, India), which is committed to perpetually explore, propagate & re-establish the path of life & living as seen, walked & shown by the Rishis globally, which is in accordance with the Vedas in its authentic form and hence everyone can experience the ultimate & everlasting happiness.

Ep 17 The Power of a life without an UNDO Button with Dr. Rashi Gupta

Dr. Rashi Gupta is a Woman Entrepreneur who has been fearless & ferocious in creating a brand for herself & her company in these male dominated fields. She is the Founder & Managing Director of Vision Mechatronics Private Ltd, leading it towards a name to reckon for in the field of Robotics, Renewable Energy & Energy Storage. 
If one takes a closer look at the alchemy of this achiever, two distinct virtues pop up, besides perseverance & hard work. These are: pioneering spirit & willingness. 
Coupled with an impressive educational background, it was not therefore surprising that she became a prominent name in the Renewable Energy Sector of India which earned her the title “Asia's Most Influential Women in Renewable Energy 2020”. She is a recipient of the Global Women Leadership Award 2021 and Women in STEM 2021 by CII - the Confederation of Indian Industry.

Ep. 16 The Power of Emotional Bonding with Shraddha Marathe

Shraddha Marathe is a dietician by profession, working as a freelancer and also associated with Deendayal Research Institute, Delhi. She is a founder member of Foodrik, a web portal related to Nutrition and Wellness for children and their parents. 
 
After having served professionally in hospitals, fitness centers, she is now contributing to the grass root community and generations to come. According to Shraddha, sticking to one’s own roots helps one grow stronger. The emotional bonding with mother nature as well with our own people is very important, this, she asserts, can happen only through cultural and traditional aspects. She is currently working on documenting these aspects through folklore related to Nutrition and Water culture.
 
She considers herself to be a confident, motivational, positive person who takes life as a challenge and lives happily through the ups and downs.

Ep. 15 The Power of Passion with Prof. Dr. Parul Shah

Prof. Dr. Parul Shah is one of the rare combinations of Performing artiste, Cross-cultural Choreographer, Bharatanatyam Guru, Dance Educator, Scholar, Researcher, Arts Administrator and highly motivated human being. Though having a High Educational Quotient, she decided to become a Bharatanatyam dancer.  She enjoys being a woman, is passionate about dance and believes that Dance connects people way better than words can. 
Join me as she talks about her passion, hard work and the support of her family & friends that enabled her reach great heights.

Ep 14 : The Relevance of Right Communication with Gayatri Puranik

Our today’s guest Ms. Gayatri Puranik who is an Entrepreneur based out of Germany. She has been running her Ayurveda business for over 20 years now. She thinks a certain kind of leadership comes naturally to everyone, is  grateful for being a woman and the period in which we are living in. Listen on as we discuss with Gayatri about her journey with Ayurveda and find what makes her The Impressive Empress. 
In this conversation, we discuss about
Gayatri's educational path and what brought her to Germany
Her passion and foray into Entrepreneurship
About being a woman of colour in a foreign land and her cultural adjustments 
Her Mantra for the DVUCAD situations
The Impact & Role of Ayurveda in the age of Digitalisation
How Communication is key to Connecting Ayurveda across the World  
 

Ep. 13 : Strengths to Satisfaction with Beena Kuttiparambil

Beena is a seasoned development professional with 24 years of progressively responsible work experience with technical and managerial expertise in the field of Adolescent Development and Participation, Reproductive Health, HIV/AIDS and Child Protection. Possesses a deep understanding of programme development, programme management policy and research. 
Since 2015, as Chief of Adolescent Development and Participation (ADAP), Beena has been leading the second decade programme in UNICEF Thailand country office. She was instrumental in transitioning HIV programme into a full-fledged adolescent development and participation section - starting from evidence generation to the development of country programme and its implementation. Her key responsibilities included evidence driven programming, research, development of partnerships, influencing and promoting adolescent specific policies, fundraising and setting up of innovative initiatives and demonstration projects and their scale up in the areas of reproductive health, HIV/AIDS, mental health, skill development, participation and path to employability of adolescents and young people.
Additional responsibilities taken up include Gender Focal Point, Peer Support Volunteer, representing UNICEF in Inter-agency and UN taskforces, Joint AIDS programme, UN Gender task force and various National Committees on HIV and teenage pregnancy prevention.
As a child, she was very active and energetic in co-curricular activities during her school and university days - participating in dance, debates, theatre, NCC and actively holding leadership options in those years. Taking life’s ups and downs in her stride, she faces life as it comes . She strongly believes in possibilities and always trusts goodness of people. She is proud to be woman- a daughter, sister, mother and friend to many.

Ep. 12 : The Fragrance of Values with Neeraja Ganesh

Our guest Ms. Neeraja Ganesh comes with 25 + years of experience in the IT industry. For the last few years, she has been working as freelance consultant, who conducts various training programs and workshops on leadership and behaviours. She decided to switch her career to work in the space of gender diversity,  after having mentored women from diverse experiences, age groups, industries and domains, to help them grow in their careers. She believes that much needs to be done to show the path to women in India, who have the innate talent but lack the knowledge of where to find help in terms of mentoring, coaching, networking and, more importantly, understanding that these are important elements in one’s professional growth.
 
In our daily life, we perceive many kinds of fragrances and it is believed that the sense of smell plays a very important role in the physiological effects of mood, stress and working capacity.
As humans, we are all gifted with a certain value set. Understanding these and understanding oneself propels a person to leadership and to lead with impact. With a clear idea of the What, How and why, they provide the support, guidance, and direction that many others need to reach their full potential. 

Ep 11: Understanding the Power of Knowledge with Vishakha Hari

We all know that Knowledge is power. In today’s digital world, a lot of information and content are freely available on anything and everything at the touch of a button. The knowledge is obtained by taking in the information, memorising them and making them available in meaningful ways. As we continue to gain knowledge, we are able to make better sense of the information gathered and can connect the dots in hindsight. We then move on to become insightful where we are able to apply our knowledge gained to obtain solutions to deeper problems. But the Actual Power lies in our Wisdom when we start using our insights to facilitate informed decision making that makes this world a better place.  And this is the Power of Knowledge.
 
Our guest today, Smt. Vishaka Hari, is a practitioner of the ancient beautiful form of art called Harikatha or Katha keerthan. Herein she weaves beautiful stories of value and wisdom interspersed with mellifluous songs of yesteryears’ great composers. She has recently founded the ‘VIJAYASHRI SCHOOL OF HARIKATHA’ – a patashaala to promote the art of Harikatha and a medium to promote our culture, values and Dharma.

Ep. 10 - Understanding the Psyche of a Psychologist with Dr. Neeradha Chandramohan

The work of navigating the human mind and finding solutions for individuals battling mental, social, and emotional afflictions is at best, challenging and rewarding and at worst, daunting. Dr. Neeradha Chandramohan, a Clinical Psychologist with more than 30 years of experience chose to deal with the rehabilitation of special needs children with multiple disabilities, so they can have, not only a good life but a self - sustaining life. She’s worked with enormous patience, energy and single mindedness, backed by spiritual strength,  which, she believes, helped her cross various barriers and reach higher levels professionally.