Bikram Choudhury Yoga Inc., a California-based studio that popularized what is known as “hot yoga,” filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy on Thursday, listing more than $16 million in legal judgments, WSJ Pro Bankruptcy reported. The judgments include one from a high-ranking employee who said she was fired after reporting sexual misconduct by yoga guru Bikram Choudhury. Hot yoga, also known as Bikram yoga, involves twisting into 26 positions with the heat cranked up to more than 100 degrees Fahrenheit. Choudhury pioneered hot yoga in the 1990s, and it has been taught at hundreds of schools world-wide. The chapter 11 filing in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Santa Barbara, Calif., listed liabilities of $10 million to $50 million, with the biggest creditors being former employees. Also filing for bankruptcy protection were several affiliates including Bikram Inc. and Bikram Yoga College of India LP.
