Shri S. Sridharan
Former Managing Trustee, Advisor & Senior Most Mentor, & Senior Yoga Therapist Consultant – KYM Chennai
Sri. S. Sridharan, 74 years old, is the senior most teacher of the Krishnamacharya Yoga Mandiram (KYM). He is presently the Advisor, Senior Yoga Therapist Consultant and Mentor at KYM. He had a successful career as a Merchant Banker in a Public-Sector Bank for 28 years. He became a student of T.K.V. Desikachar in 1980s and learnt the nuances of Yoga in the ‘Gurukula’ style directly for over 3 decades during which time, he was exposed to all the important texts in Yoga and application of Yoga for illnesses and spirituality. He also learnt Vedic Chanting in the traditional style under his teacher. During this period, he had to divide his time between a banking career and learning and teaching Yoga under the tutelage of Desikachar. Drawn by the desire to fully devote his time to Yoga, he gave up his position as a Merchant Banker and took to Yoga on full time basis in 1998. In 2002, he was directed to take the position of Managing Trustee of KYM, which was held by Desikachar for 25 years from the inception. In this position, he had to lead the KYM as the administrative and technical head. He held this position for about 8 years. This brought him to limelight in the world of Yoga.
He represented KYM in all the forums, conferences, seminars, etc. His career as Managing Trustee includes the distinction of getting ISO Certification for KYM and moving to its own building. His teaching career includes Consultations and Classes of Yoga for Therapy, classroom teaching of all aspects of Yoga to Indian and International students in India and abroad. He has anchored special programmes combining the ancient Indian rituals in the modern context from the Yoga point of view.
From 2010 to 2015 he served as a member of the Governing Body, Governing Council of the Morarji Desai National Institute of Yoga (MDNIY), the apex body for Yoga of the Ministry of AYUSH, Government of India. This gave an opportunity for him to spread the teaching of the tradition of KYM. He represents KYM in the Indian Yoga Association (IYA) as one of the founding members. He is the Vice President, Executive Council, and a Lifetime Member of IYA. He is a Member of the Governing Body of the Central Council for Research in Yoga and Naturopathy (CCRYN).
He is a Member of the Yoga Certification Board set up by the Ministry of AYUSH, which is active in bringing certification for Yoga Teachers. He served as Yoga Expert in WHO Technical Review meeting for developing m-Yoga mobile application.
He was awarded the title ‘Dronācārya’ by the Rotary Club of Madras East. On the occasion of the celebration of Yoga Mahotsav for the 8th International Day of Yoga 2022, he was awarded “Lifetime Achievement Award” by Sri Balaji Vidyapeeth, Pondicherry. Widely travelled, he has represented India in the World Yoga Festivals in China and UK. He has authored a book which gives the biographical sketch of T. Krishnamacharya in Tamil. His other interests include Carnatic Music.
