Aishwarya Manivannan
- Trumping the myth that women are more suited to play soft sports, Aishwarya Manivannan carved out a niche for herself in the sport of Silambam, through her focused efforts and determination.
- Quite interestingly, it was her Bharatanatyam teacher, Kavitha Ramu IAS, who sowed the interest in Aishwarya to learn Silambam. She casually remarked, ‘Your movements are very swift and precise. Why don’t you learn Silambam?’ These words created a World level Silambam Champion in the next 5 years.
- This new-found interest in Silambam led her to Power Pandian Master. He is a master who doesn’t just practise Silambam, but worships Silambam! After joining Power Pandian Aasaan Academy, Aishwarya trained along with the master’s 3 daughters.
- Some regard Silambam as a defence fighting technique and some regard it as an art. But Aishwarya goes a step further and calls it Spirituality.
- Aishwarya has never failed to bring glory to Silambattam at world-level competitions. All her speeches start with “Our Silambattam which is 3000-years old”.
- ‘Silambam is a war-fighting technique. It is right only for those with bulky bodies.’ – This was the statement that was associated with Silambam before the entry of Aishwarya. Aishwarya proved that one’s size does not matter if he/ she has the interest and perseverance to learn the art. She holds a great part in spreading the message that Silambam is a form of meditation.
- On the National Handloom Day, 2016, Aishwarya released a video that went viral. In that video she wore a simple handloom saree and aced through her movements with great perfection! This video inspired a lot of women to learn Silambam.
- Even today, Silambam is vastly considered as a rural art. Aishwarya’s wish is to take such beautiful art to urban areas too and make more people learn it.
- Aishwarya is from Chennai. She finished her degree in Loyola, and now she is a successful entrepreneur. She runs a design firm named ‘Maisha Studio’.
- Every traditional art will have to compete against modern arts to prove its brilliance. To help such traditional arts compete, adequate funding is essential. Aishwarya is working toward giving Silambattam such economic strength. The Silambam workshop she conducted throughout Tamil Nadu benefited numerous people.