In Step with Her Self

From Kuchipudi and Bharatanatyam to acting and activism, there is little that Mallika Sarabhai has not done in her celebrated and eventful career.

- Shreevatsa Nevatia

While others have used the memoir format to take stock of their life and work, the 69-year-old dancer delves deep into the mind by first examining the trials and tribulations of the body in her recently released book In Free Fall: My Experiments with Living. There is much that we can learn from her advocacy of wellness, yoga and mindful living, but the candour with which she describes her struggles is one we should all perhaps emulate. As she spoke to Reader’s Digest, we found that honesty is not a mood for Sarabhai, it is a compulsion.

 Any sort of memoir asks for an almost brazen candour from its writer. It seems clear that In Free Fall demanded several honest revelations. Did anything help prepare you? My life! I thought I had to be truthful and honest and vulnerable. I wanted to be able to help others by showing women and younger people that to be vulnerable isn’t to be weak. If all you show is your beautiful side, without the doubts, people see you as a plastic Bollywood star. Being transparent allows people to trust you. And trust is very important to me in life.