Malini Taneja

Wow we made 1/4 of our goal in less than 4 days! Thank you all for your support for the school building expansion for @bhakta.bandhava gurukula in Vrindavan. The kids are so excited. 🥳 Soon we will be able to invite 300 more kids! Subscribe to Braj Seva monthly for just $20. All donations are tax deductible. Links in bio! Let’s keep this momentum going 🙌🏼 Jaya Jaya Sri Radhe! #Vrindavan #charity #school #harekrishna #fundraiser

Happy Akshay Tritiya! Today is the day to start something new. We are expanding @bhakta.bandhava gurukulam with a new school house, 12 more classrooms, science lab and more staff to have up to 500 students. $20 a month pledge is all we need to make all these children’s dreams come true. Link in bio, more info in comments. #radheradhe #education #charity #vrindavan school

Been struggling with my lungs this past month and it feels so good to inhale deeply without a cough attack. Thank you to my healers, and the ultimate medicine, the holy name. Nostalgic stream of consciousness on jazz chords on a stormy night. #bhakti #jazz #krishna #song

Continued from the previous post on Durga’s Daughters- SOUND DESIGN My first musical collaborator on board was @soumikdatta whose own work includes so much incorporating of field recordings, real life sounds alongside his musical compositions. Even before he came on officially, he was my thought partner- dreaming up possibilities for what this project could be like. From the beginning, I knew I had limitations that prevented a “set” for this project, and so I wanted to lean into the idea that he calls “ear cinema” where the sonic world creates the environment down to the details. This actually tremendously aligns with Bharatanatyam, where we are always interacting with our surroundings through imagination and a detailed gestural vocabulary. And in this piece, which raises the question of “seeing what you believe” rather than “believing what you see” - soundscape was critical. In a 4 day residency at Hawkwood, Soumik created the sonic world with us in real time, as the girls moved thru space. With him, imagination, choreography, theatricality, and sound were completely intertwined. Even the day before, he insisted that something was missing in the last scene and got us all to work in the kitchen of our airbnb! This is an excerpt from a split scene- Saras is teaching her school kids about navaratri (song written by malini) and laksh is presenting a case in court. [sound design, durgas daughters, collaboration, Soumik Datta, aural set, creative process, experimental work, theatre, song, dance]

Save the date! 🪷 August 21st-23rd Our 6th year annual Kheturi Kirtan Festival 🌿🌿🌿🌿🌿🌿🌿🌿🌿🌿🌿🌿🌿 Bhakta Bandhav Ashram in Ellenville, NY #kirtan #bhakti #harekrishna #upstateny #festival

What a gift and honor to be with these special children from Vrindavan Dham. I was fortunate to be able to share some basic singing exercises and skills in harmonium to support their Kirtan practice while I’m here. We had so much fun and they are so enthusiastic to learn more. This school has really touched my heart. I have followed the journey of the students since the school started during the pandemic and I am amazed at how it’s developed and how the children have blossomed with the loving support of their teachers and principal @orionsent . I encourage anyone who comes to Vrindavan to visit the school and become moved and touched by the sincere service to the Vrajavasi children. They are getting such a well rounded education that includes the arts, music, sewing, entrepreneurship, Sanskrit and philosophy. On top of that they are provided delicious prasadam for lunch and many times dinner as well. There is a medical fund for emergency health needs. Most of them come from extremely poor families and this makes learning so much more easeful. They can dream and manifest a better life for themselves. They are expanding the school to host 300 children and will soon go up to 10th standard. Follow their journey and find out how you can support @bhakta.bandhava #charity #school #vrindavan #education #holi

On this Shiva Ratri, I’m remembering this beautiful rendition of Panchakshara Stotram that I learned as a dance choreography by @mythiliprakash One cannot gain entrance into Vraja or witness Radha-Krishna’s rasa dance without His permission. First one must shed all false ego, purush bhava, and be cleansed of ignorance. He uproots the thorns in our hearts that impede self-realization. Praying for His mercy on this day with my humble first attempt at singing this song. Below is the translation. He who has the king of snakes as his garland and who has three eyes, He whose body is smeared with sacred ashes and who is the great Lord, He who is eternal, who is ever pure with the four directions as his clothes, Salutations to that Shiva, who is represented by the syllable “na” He who is worshipped with water from the Mandakini river and smeared with sandal paste, He who is the lord of Nandi and of the ghosts and goblins, the great Lord, He who is worshipped with Mandara and many other flowers, Salutations to that Shiva, who is represented by the syllable “ma” He who is auspicious and who is like the newly risen sun causing the lotus-face of Gauri to blossom, He who is the destroyer of the sacrifice of Daksha, He who has a blue throat and has a bull as his emblem, Salutations to that Shiva, who is represented by the syllable “shi” He who is worshipped by the best and most respected sages – Vasishtha, Agastya and Gautama, and also by the gods, and who is the crown of the universe, He who has the moon, sun and fire as his three eyes, Salutations to that Shiva, who is represented by the syllable “va” He who is the embodiment of yagna (sacrifice) and who has matted locks, He who has the trident in his hand and who is eternal, He who is divine, who is the shining one and who has the four directions as his clothes, Salutations to that Shiva, who is represented by the syllable “ya” #shiva #mahadeva #sanskrit #bhakti #harharmahadev

What a year of dancing with these girls. 🥹🪷☺️ I’ve seen such growth and consistent dedication as a collective, daily offering our body in devotion, letting the discipline of the art mould us, teach us and shelter us through all that life brings. These girls make me want to give all that I have and more. I am so grateful for their trust in me, and hope to continue to blossom together on this spiritual journey. Here’s Part 1 of our year’s snapshots Dec. 2024-May 2025 1- Chennai trip, workshop with @bhavajan.kumar 2-Vrindavan, rehearsing for Gurudeva’s tirobhava 3-New Zealand, @holicoloursplash with @ramanidougherty 4-Hawaii, Volcano School performance 5-Hawaii, Holi Folk Dance 6-Seattle, re-learning my guru’s Kali Kauthvam with @shridzu 7-Hawaii, preparing for Rama Navami 8-Holland, Madhurastakam by @roshni_radhasundari @trisha.tarunigopi 9-France, Folk Dance by Taruni from Holland #indiandance #bharatanatyam #bhakti #danceschool

It’s been a year since I took these girls to India and the memories, spiritual pilgrimage, and art we immersed in is still rippling its effects in our lives. There is a special satisfaction that comes with giving time and energy to girls as they blossom into women. This is our humble dance offering in front of the Old Ranji temple in Pushkar last December. It was during the golden hour after singing Kirtan and distributing Bhakti literatures in the streets of this holy town. The pujaris at the temple had asked what our purpose of filming was and I replied we want to glorify and share our love for Krishna and His pastimes with His Shakti. That still remains true. Thank you for filming this so beautifully @dayanidhiimages @1more808 Jaya Jaya Sri Radhe Shyam! Jaya Sri Vrindavan Dham! #garba #raas #rajasthan #indiandance #bhakti

We had a blissful time with the families that joined us for our Braj Bhumi Kids Pilgrimage during the week of Thanksgiving. It was intimate and sweet. We were all like family. The children watched out for each other, received deep spiritual impressions and association and built closer friendships. We focused on the ways we grow relationships in Bhakti according to Srila Rupa Goswami and tried to put these principles into practice with the giving and receiving of: -Food -Gifts -Words from the heart We are grateful to the generosity of @yogajeffrey and @charlestowle of @uscapitalglobal for sponsoring this trip for the children and we hope this service and experience will continue for families every year. We want to give our appreciation to all the children, parents, sannyasis, and cooks and helpers who participated. And our deepest pranams to our gurus and guardians who continue to bless and shower us with mercy. Jaya Jaya Sri Radhe! #radheradhe #kids #pilgrimage #vrindavan #bhakti

No matter where I travel or stay, my heart and home will always be in Vrindavan. 🦚 Where every word is a song and every step a dance. Not for entertainment, money, popularity or even art’s sake, but the natural and beautiful expressions of pure unconditional love 🫶🏼 to the sweet darling Beloved of the heart. 🪷 Here I’m dancing at one of my favorite temples, Radha Gopinath 2 years ago for my god brother’s song offering with his band @kulashakerofficial . Captured by my sakhi @radhikaadasi . Now this temple’s ancient architecture is sadly covered in a cage. Despite so many new buildings and changes, may the true sweetness of this land never escape my heart and only deepen. 💚 [Radhe Radhe, no filter, no effects, Bhakti, Vrindavan, Hare Krishna, dance, Indian dance, Rajasthan, spirituality, folk dance, Indian music, Krishna, gypsy]

Sweet reflections from Sayani Dāsī at Kaliya Ghat. 🐍 We had a very blessed 8 days visiting all the holy places of Braj on our Children’s Vrindavan Yatra. We spent time with loving and wise sadhus and participated in some special seva. We are so grateful to @yogajeffrey @charlestowle and @brajbhumi.group for sponsoring this unique program. We hope it will continue every year. Thank you for the opportunity to serve the children and families in this way. 🌸🙏🏼 [vrindavan, parikrama, braj, children, Hare Krishna, Krishna kids, gauidya, Vaishnavas, Radhe Radhe, kaliya]