Overcoming barriers, Vijay Laxmi became a gold medalist in psychology, established the UGC Center for Women’s Studies, and mentored several doctoral students. Her life epitomizes determination and the pursuit of true potential.

Dr. Vijay Laxmi Chouhan is the former Dean of Student Welfare and former professor and Head of the Department of Psychology at Mohanlal Sukhadia University, Udaipur. She is also the founder of the UGC Center for Women's Studies.

Vijay lives in Udaipur with her husband and two sons. She is currently looking after her NGO, the Academy of Well-Being Society.

Vijay Laxmi shares that she is the first gold medalist from Rajasthan University in psychology and, with the help of a group of students, she set up an independent Department of Psychology at the university. She was also the first assistant professor for psychology and worked from 1972–1974, after which she resigned as she was married and shifted to Udaipur with her husband. After shifting to Udaipur, Vijay made firm efforts to start psychology as a subject at Meera Girls College, but she was not allowed as she was underage. She then had to wait a year to start her career in Udaipur.

Vijay Laxmi says that her role model in life is her grandmother-in-law, who passed away at the age of 105 and was the first engineer from the Mewar region. It was her grandmother-in-law who supported her to work and study after her marriage, despite all the restrictions in a Rajput family for women.

Vijay Laxmi says that she worked for two years at Meera Girls College, and then she switched to Mohanlal Sukhadia University as an Assistant Professor of Psychology. She says she has come a long way and has faced a lot of barriers, but she was able to cross them because of her potential and well-managed upbringing. Her achievements give her a sense of self-satisfaction and a forward-thinking vision.

Talking about her childhood, Vijay Laxmi says that she belongs to the Sodha family of Khetri. Her father was a gold medalist doctor from Calcutta University, and her brother is a gold medalist from MREC, Jaipur. She says her father always motivated her to go for higher studies and work. He always supported her, which was extraordinary given the fact that it was not allowed for most women back in her day. Her mother could not openly support her, but she was also internally in her favor.

Vijay Laxmi says she was in the NCC, NSS, and many other groups while she was in college. She used to actively participate in all the extracurricular activities and do a lot of leadership work. She says there’s always been a lot of hindrance and struggle for girls who want to go forward in Indian society, and there was a lot of gender discrimination back in the day for women in India.

Vijay Laxmi believes males and females are complementary and should respect each other. They are both biologically different but psychologically the same. They share a balance of power, with the physical power resting with the men, while women have emotional powers.

Vijay Laxmi believes adjustments in life are very important. One should always adjust according to the situation to avoid mishaps. She thinks self-auditing is very important in life, and if a person is able to analyze themselves, they can avoid harsh situations in life. These things can be learned from their role models, elders, and even books.

Advising youngsters, Vijay Laxmi says that they should get into the field in which they are most interested and where their aptitude lies. Anyone can earn money, but what is important is whether you are satisfied with what you are doing. She says satisfaction is not in pleasing others but in pleasing ourselves. "It is important for a person to maintain interpersonal relationships in the corporate world because it is the key to success in corporate life", reveals Vijay.

Vijay Laxmi says that there will be people who make you laugh or cry, and some will motivate you to move forward in life. She thinks she genetically got her leadership skills from her father, and everywhere she used to go, she would immediately become the center of attraction. Vijay was fourteen years old when she completed her tenth standard, which was a difficult thing to do in her time. She had a deep interest in her studies along with household chores like knitting and sewing. She used to have a holistic personality and was eager to keep learning.

Vijay Laxmi says that it is very important for all parents to understand the potential of their children and stop forcing them to follow the dreams that they once saw for themselves. Instead, they should be provided with values and allowed to do what they are good at.

Drawing a comparison between education and experience, Vijay feels that education is about change and modification in behavior. The process of learning is continuous, and it provides us with a stimulus that gives us experience. Experience then brings out our potential, and potential leads us to different paths in life.

Vijay Laxmi has published more than one hundred and fifty research papers in both international and national journals. She has helped 75 students with a doctorate degree in psychology, and her students are now spread all across the world and are working for the welfare of society.

Vijay Laxmi established the Academy of Well-Being Society in 2007 and started publishing research articles by her students. She says her organization edits and publishes the original research articles in a bi-annual journal, and 15 volumes have been published to date, which she is very proud of.

Vijay Laxmi shares that she organized the National Film Festival for children and young people in 1992 and the International Film Festival in 1993, which were attended by eight hundred students and known personalities such as Jaya Bachchan and Sonia Gandhi. She has also been an active member of Pratap Smarak Samiti for many years now.

Talking about the pandemic, Vijay Laxmi says that it has taught us human values. She adds that while, on the one hand, it made people self-centered and fearful, on the other hand, it gave them an opportunity to spend time with their families and learn new things. She says people who were hard-working and strong were not affected, but people who were weak physically and mentally were affected the most.

Vijay Laxmi shares that she never faced boredom in her life because she was always occupied by music and dance. She says that just like we prefer flavors in the food we eat, our body needs different activities to keep it fresh and enhance its metabolism. She says it is important to satisfy all ‘tann’, ‘mann, and ‘dhan’ in order to be happy in life.