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Finding Strength in Struggle: Srividya’s Immigrant Experience
What happens when you leave behind everything you know—your language, food, customs, and even climate—to start fresh in a completely different world? For Srividya Venkatesubramanya, that experience of cultural shift, isolation, and rebuilding identity led not just to personal resilience, but to community transformation.
From her own words, “I don't feel guilty anymore because through Ra-Ve, I'm helping others hold onto what makes them who they are.” This one sentence captures Srividya’s transformation from navigating her own identity loss to building a platform that helps others preserve theirs.
From growing up in India immersed in classical music and dance to building a new life in the U.S., Srividya’s journey is a powerful testament to the immigrant experience. She opens up about loneliness, cultural guilt, raising bicultural children, and how founding the Ra-Ve Cultural Foundation became a way to reclaim and celebrate identity while helping others do the same.
In This Episode You’ll Learn:
- What it really feels like to start over in a new country
- The emotional complexities of being a first-generation immigrant parent
- How cultural guilt shows up—and how to let it go
- The power of art, language, and tradition in healing identity wounds
- Why Srividya believes representation isn't optional—it's essential
- How one woman turned cultural loss into cultural leadership
This Episode Is for You If...
- You’ve ever struggled to feel like you belong
- You’re an immigrant or child of immigrants balancing two cultures
- You believe in the power of storytelling and community healing
- You’re passionate about culture, tradition, and raising empowered children
- You want a reminder that your voice—and your heritage—matters
Key Timestamps:
01:25 – Moving from Chennai to Delhi: childhood culture shift
06:00 – Early passion for classical Indian dance and music
20:40 – The cultural shock of moving to Minneapolis
25:10 – Crying every day and the shift to finding purpose
29:00 – Navigating motherhood and heritage guilt in the U.S.
42:50 – The birth of the Ravi Cultural Foundation
53:00 – How Ra-Ve helped Srividya heal and help others
- Ra-Ve Cultural Foundation: https://www.ra-veculturalfoundation.org/
✦ LISTEN ON ✦
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/7cLA6L4hoqFxE21VetsW3P?si=851e12258eba4c28
Apple Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-good-influencers/id1822428424
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheGoodInfluencersPodcast
✦ CONNECT WITH US ON ✦
Facebook// https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61576199604347
Instagram// https://www.instagram.com/thegoodinfluencerspodcast/
View all episodes
By Ty ManningWhat happens when you leave behind everything you know—your language, food, customs, and even climate—to start fresh in a completely different world? For Srividya Venkatesubramanya, that experience of cultural shift, isolation, and rebuilding identity led not just to personal resilience, but to community transformation.
From her own words, “I don't feel guilty anymore because through Ra-Ve, I'm helping others hold onto what makes them who they are.” This one sentence captures Srividya’s transformation from navigating her own identity loss to building a platform that helps others preserve theirs.
From growing up in India immersed in classical music and dance to building a new life in the U.S., Srividya’s journey is a powerful testament to the immigrant experience. She opens up about loneliness, cultural guilt, raising bicultural children, and how founding the Ra-Ve Cultural Foundation became a way to reclaim and celebrate identity while helping others do the same.
In This Episode You’ll Learn:
- What it really feels like to start over in a new country
- The emotional complexities of being a first-generation immigrant parent
- How cultural guilt shows up—and how to let it go
- The power of art, language, and tradition in healing identity wounds
- Why Srividya believes representation isn't optional—it's essential
- How one woman turned cultural loss into cultural leadership
This Episode Is for You If...
- You’ve ever struggled to feel like you belong
- You’re an immigrant or child of immigrants balancing two cultures
- You believe in the power of storytelling and community healing
- You’re passionate about culture, tradition, and raising empowered children
- You want a reminder that your voice—and your heritage—matters
Key Timestamps:
01:25 – Moving from Chennai to Delhi: childhood culture shift
06:00 – Early passion for classical Indian dance and music
20:40 – The cultural shock of moving to Minneapolis
25:10 – Crying every day and the shift to finding purpose
29:00 – Navigating motherhood and heritage guilt in the U.S.
42:50 – The birth of the Ravi Cultural Foundation
53:00 – How Ra-Ve helped Srividya heal and help others
- Ra-Ve Cultural Foundation: https://www.ra-veculturalfoundation.org/
✦ LISTEN ON ✦
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/7cLA6L4hoqFxE21VetsW3P?si=851e12258eba4c28
Apple Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-good-influencers/id1822428424
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheGoodInfluencersPodcast
✦ CONNECT WITH US ON ✦
Facebook// https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61576199604347
Instagram// https://www.instagram.com/thegoodinfluencerspodcast/