Music and yoga bring inmates and staff together at Viyyur Central Prison

A programme called ‘Aathmanadam’ at Viyyur Central Prison in Thrissur has inmates and prison staff sitting down together for sessions of music therapy, relaxation and yoga.

Prisons are high-stress places for inmates and staff alike, and depression, anxiety and violence are common. Studies of music and yoga programmes in prisons in India and abroad have found that they can reduce stress, improve sleep and ease tension between inmates and guards.

Kerala’s prisons department has run several reform programmes in recent years, from food units and farms to education, aimed at preparing inmates for life after release.