Bikram Choudhury made a fortune by teaching a form of yoga practiced in 40 degree heat. Bikramyogan quickly became popular and is said to be able to lead to weight loss and positive effects on several diseases and disorders.

Reported for sex abuse

When Bikram started teaching and certifying instructors from all over the world, reports of sexual abuse, abuse of power and discrimination came. In a new documentary by Oscar-winning director Eva Orner, women appear and tell.

"Special group dynamics"

Angelica Majoros is a partner in a yoga center and has been trained by Bikram Choudhury. She says that he developed a special group dynamic that many got stuck in.

- His success rose to his head and he used his power. He expressed himself increasingly racist and sexist. After rumors of sexual abuse, we demanded a response from his headquarters. Since we got no answer, we decided to distance himself from him. We removed his name and stopped sending instructors there, says Angelica Majoros to SVT News.

Changes the name

Some Swedish yoga centers have changed their names from Bikram to Hot yoga in order not to be associated with Choudhury.

- Our members see Bikram as a name for a yoga class, like Ashtanga or Yin, comments Ricardo and Alejandro Toutparfait, who run a yoga center in Sweden.

Broke with him

Yoga center owners Angelica Majoros and Johanna Horisk were among the first to break with Bikram and his movement. His co-workers demanded that they keep quiet with their criticism. Since he was the only one who trained instructors in the bikram positions, it became noticeable for their activities.

- We stood up for ethics and morals and ended up in a difficult situation. We were afraid that someone would be abused and we wanted to take our responsibility to prevent it, says Angelica Majoros.

Bikram Choudhury has denied all charges.