Purvaa Sampath: Music Therapy in India

In the first episode of this series, I spoke with Purvaa Sampath - the first Credentialed Board Certified Music Therapist to be practicing in Bengaluru, India. 

I asked her how she got into studying music therapy at the Berklee College of Music in Boston, what it was like to move back to Bengaluru after many years of living  abroad and studying music therapy in an American context. Was it difficult to start from scratch and build her company in her home city? Is music therapy practiced very differently in India as opposed to how it's practiced in the US? Did the Indian population take to music therapy or was the stigma of 'therapy' a difficult obstacle to overcome? How does one have the conversation about music therapy as a profession vs. being confused as a volunteer service or educational service? Purvaa sheds light on some important topics. 

In just a little over 3 years, Purvaa has a client base of close to a hundred clients a week. She works with differently abled folk of all ages. She runs her private practice and also provides music therapy services at external facilities. She is passionate about mental health advocacy and education, and is constantly pushing the boundary for what music therapy of the Indian context means.

Hope you enjoy the conversation x

CORRECTIONS IN PODCAST:
Women's Christian College is in Chennai.
Mayah's Universe, Purvaa's Music Therapy Practice, started in 2018.

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