Women on the Move: Rise to the Top

Gowri Varanashi, 33,

Rock Climber

For 33-year-old Gowri Varanashi based in Bengaluru, climbing isn’t just about scaling new heights; it’s an exercise in mindfulness. Hanging off a cliff face, as you decide on your next move, there’s little time for distraction or other thoughts. “For me, climbing feels like self care, where I’m focused on myself. Your mind becomes so present in that moment, that you’re not worried about anything else. All your worries disappear,” she says.

As an environmental studies and biology student in the US, Varanashi worked as a guide with an eco-tourism company during the holidays, taking groups into the Peruvian Amazon. On one such trip a friend who had tagged along noticed the ease with which Varanashi scampered up tall Strangler Fig trees and suggested that she try her hand at climbing. After her first climb in an indoor rock-climbing gym Varanashi was hooked. 

Although initially it was a hobby, she says, “It slowly took over my life and everything now revolves around it.” An avid sports climber, Varanashi doesn’t aim to set records but climbs for the love of it. “For me it’s a form of nature connection—you’re going outdoors and you’re using your entire body, hands and feet to climb up this rock.”

In the US, Varanashi participated in a number of events and festivals, many exclusively for women. Back in India, sometimes she would be the only woman in a group going climbing. While her family have always been very supportive of the sport, she realized that this may not be the same for others. Besides familial expectations and cultural norms, she believes that it’s also a mindset that needs to be overcome. “I started realizing that maybe it’s harder to approach climbing as a sport because as women we tell ourselves a lot of stories that are driven by society: that women aren’t strong enough, that outdoor sports aren’t for women, and so on. We tend to internalize these ideas and often don’t try new things,” she says. This was the genesis of CLAW or Climb Like A Woman, an all women-led climbing non-profit organization, that she runs with four fellow climbers. CLAW’s first event held in 2018 was a big success and the feedback from the participants validated Varanashi’s beliefs that climbing helps women break mental barriers and instill self confidence.

“After the first event we realized how important this is as we had so many women giving us powerful feedback. A couple of them said that it was liberating to come together and wear whatever we want, not care about getting tanned or getting scratches. We could just be!” she says.

A growing membership base and roster of climbing events through the year, point to the increasing interest in climbing and Varanashi leads from the front. “Climbing is a powerful way of showing society that women can do anything they put their minds to and that they have equal rights to the outdoors,” she says.