KANAKAVALLI JOURNAL

Kanakavalli’s February Vignette is the inimitable Kalpana Mohan, a writer who grew up in Chennai, and lives in California. Read her story in her own words:  bittersweet, filled with laughter, love and loss, and life, crafted in the skilled hands of a true wordsmith.

In our first Vignette for 2019, Effie Thomas gives us a glimpse into her fascinating life in Dubai as a small business owner, a mother, and a collector of vintage cars and art.  Growing up, Effie's parents instilled in her a love for craft and for all things Indian; a love she continues nurture and hopes to pass on to her own daughters.

n December's Vignette, Glory Kanikella gives us a glimpse into her a life as a working mother in Hong Kong. The Executive Director of a garments manufacturing firm with operations across four time zones, Glory is always connected to work. As a mother of a three-year-old, she finds joy in experiencing life afresh with her daughter Ariana.

Urmila Sathyanarayanan, our November Vignette, has been dancing for as long as she can remember, and has performed across India and the world. A renowned Bharatanatyam artiste, she runs her own Bharatanatyam institution that follows a uniquely holistic approach to the art form. 

Kieran Heralall, better known as KH Kanna, is a Bharatanatyam dancer based in Toronto, Canada, and Kanakavalli’s October Vignette. Despite having a full-time day job as an insurance professional, Kanna performs around the world, choreographs his own shows, and studies Carnatic vocal music.

Kanakavalli’s September Vignette, Thangam Venkatesan is more than a doctor. A reluctant physician to begin with, Thangam has now come to believe that pursuing medicine shaped her destiny. She is an international medical expert, a teacher and academician, a meditation instructor, an avid gardener, a mother, daughter, wife, and traveller, inhabiting her many roles with grace and love.