Johanna Rodrigues is a rare female face in
India's breakdancing scene and the first-ever B-Girl champion at Red Bull BC
One Cypher India 2019. She is also a trained Yoga teacher and planning to
provide experiential workshops based on Movement Therapy.
From being a proud Goan who could eat anything
including beef, pork, chicken, her journey to being vegan for the past 3 years
is quite inspiring. She comes from a Goan Catholic family and grew up in
Bangalore.
How did your vegan journey start?
Earlier, one of my best friends turned vegan,
but she was vegetarian so I didn't take her seriously. But when Richa, one of
my non-vegetarian friends also turned vegan, I started thinking. During those
days, I was training with my body, and as I was more connected with my body, I
stopped eating food which didn't feel good. I stopped eating beef because it didn't
feel good to my body. I felt there was a lot of heat in my body. Initially,
there was ego that I could eat anything being a Goan Catholic. I was proud that
I could eat anything including beef, pork and chicken.
In my case, my initial reason was selfish.
When I saw the cows eating garbage on the road, I thought about what nutrition
I was getting from them. Later, I saw how the cows were treated: they were
locked up and they were not happy. This made me think that if they are not
healthy, I can't eat them. I know, initially, it was a very selfish
concern.
However, once the barrier broke, I started
looking from every perspective. It was not a big turning point, but a series of
small ones. There was a time when I used to think that if animals are kept properly
and they are happy, then I can eat them. But, by then I had reached a point
where my body was feeling good. Be it from the perspective of an animal lover,
environmental consequence or my body, all the things were in perfect alignment.
That's why I've been vegan for three years.
How was the transition?
My transition was over a period of 6 months.
Initially, I became pescatarian. In the beginning, I stopped eating beef and
very quickly stopped eating pork as well when I realized that they are such
intelligent and cute animals. Soon, I stopped eating mutton and that was a very
big thing for me because I used to eat mutton Biryani every week. But I was
kind of stuck with chicken and fish because till then I believed, fish are free
till we eat them and my logic with chicken was that I couldn't connect with them
as emotional beings. At that point, Richa called me, asked me what I meant by
that and explained how badly they are treated. I started feeling most for
chicken and how cute they are. Thus, I stopped chicken as well, and consumed
fish for a few months. Gradually, I gave up fish and dairy. Dairy was not that
hard for me but giving up meat was. Mainly because, being a Goan, I was used to
eating all kinds of non-vegetarian food, curries, sausages etc and that was a
little difficult.
So, giving up was hard for you?
Initially, yeah! The Goan sausages were
especially difficult for me. But I said, it's not about the meat, it was about
the taste and flavour. However, over the past few years, we make the same
coconut-based fish curry masala in our home, but it's only the gravy.
How is it at home now?
It's just me who is vegan. My mom still eats
meat. One of my cousins turned pescatarian i.e. only eating fish. Initially,
everyone thought I was too sensitive and I should be practical. Now, after
being vegan for 3 years, they've all accepted that it is conscious living and I
hope they also turn vegan. But I think veganism is too taboo in our culture,
but the young people in my family are open about the idea.
You've represented India at the professional
stage, did the vegan lifestyle keep you away from anything, or any other positive or negative impact you felt?
I think it propels me by a great amount.
Nutritionally, I feel a lot more energetic. Before becoming vegan, I felt a lot
of heat in my body and over the three years, it has changed a lot. My recovery
is much quicker nowadays, I can train really hard and the next day I feel
better compared to earlier. Also, I think it gives me a chance to stand by what
I believe in even if it's difficult in certain moments. This gives me a lot of
inner strength and can push me forward in a lot of difficult situations
including competitions.
We train really hard, around 3 hours a day and
that's why, earlier I used to feel very heavy, especially when I used to source
protein from meat. Now, I don't get inflammation as much in my muscles. That is
the main form of recovery if you're not feeling sore. So by quick recovery, I
mean less inflammation.
How was the experience in Japan?
It was nice. But it was difficult being vegan
there. It is mostly because of the language barrier and everything is written
in Japanese. They say that even soya products might be dusted with non-veg
powders. I did find a few vegan cafes there, and it was really nice to eat in
peace without worrying. However, overall it was difficult there.
Do you still feel any difficulty being vegan?
Sometimes while travelling, especially to
other countries, it is hard because of the language barrier and less
availability of alternatives in smaller towns. However, even in Japan, I was
able to find a vegan restaurant. Because of movies like The Game Changers,
people throughout the world have become more aware of it. Sometimes local vegan
communities also help a lot.
What change in social life happened?
My family initially thought that I was
brainwashed. It took time for them to understand that it's not that. And
socially, a lot of my close friends started turning vegan after around a year.
I'm lucky that a couple of my close friends turned vegan. Rest of my friends
aren't vegan but they respect my decision and are open to the idea. So, when we
eat together, we'll eat something vegan. I think it's important to understand
that sometimes people take their own time. I know in the process we kill a lot
of animals, but it isn't something we can rush. And this way is better because
when they themselves make the decision, it lasts longer. They shouldn’t try,
then quit it and talk rubbish about it and tell others that it is too hard.
My approach has been to make people move
slowly and consciously rather than just trying it out because it is a big
change in terms of food. They have to find new nutritious food, a new favourite
food. It's going to take a little time.
What is the best thing about being vegan?
I just really feel in alignment. I don't
believe that any animal should unnecessarily suffer and I am really happy that
I am not contributing to this suffering of so many animals anymore. And yes, I
think I feel this alignment makes me really happy.
You teach Yoga, right? During Yoga lessons do
you impart veganism also?
No, I don't really like to talk about it
because it can be a sensitive topic if people are not ready to listen but a lot
of people come to me and ask me. Only then do I have a conversation with them.
Unless they want to change something a little, I don't talk to them about it.
However, I'm quite active on social media and vocal about being vegan. Every
few weeks, I put up a post as a firm believer of veganism, but in person, I
don't want to lecture about being vegan and prefer a discussion.
Is it only a vegan diet or both Yoga and
veganism which contributed to your improvement?
I began doing yoga more regularly and with
dedication after becoming vegan. Even in the yogic lifestyle, they talk about
Sattvic food and it is the food which is easy for the body to digest. If you
don't eat such sattvic food, you can't follow the path of meditation or working
on your body because it requires a lot of calmness and patience.
What message would you like to give to
non-vegans?
In today's world, there are a lot of people
whose life has been pulled down by so many diseases like diabetes, hypertension
etc and the best way is prevention rather than cure. Food which tastes nice for
5 seconds goes into our body and becomes a part of our whole mind. So, it's
important to live more consciously and be aware of what we are consuming.