Interview with Spar & Bernstein Attorney Bindhu Vijayan

The following is an in-depth, revealing interview with Spar & Bernstein immigration attorney Bindhu Vijayan:

When did you come to Spar & Bernstein?

I began in Sept. 2006.

Where did you go to college, what did you major in, and when did you graduate?

Loyola University Chicago, Psychology, 2003.

What law school did you attend?

New York Law School.

Where did you grow up?

I was born and raised in Chicago and grew up in an area that was very racially mixed, though we were actually the only Indian family there.

From where are your family roots?

South India.

How many times have you visited there?

Four.

What Indian language do you speak?

Malayalam. A piece of trivia: It’s the only language that’s a palindrome, which means it’s spelled the same way backwards and forwards.

Were there any lawyers in your family?

I actually come from a family of healthcare professionals, including my mom, who’s a registered nurse. And my goal was to join the family force. But my passions didn’t lay there. So, as a little girl, trying to figure out what I wanted to do, I went from profession to profession. I ended up becoming the first lawyer in the family.

Are you more like your mother or your father?

I’m a daddy’s girl.

What does/did he do?

He was a machinist in a factory.

What’s the best advice he ever gave you?

He said that you can’t help people until you’re in a secure place yourself, that whatever passion you have to help others, it will be hindered by your own financial, emotional struggle.

What are your interests outside of law?

I’m a classical Indian dancer – a form called Bharatha Natyam – and I’ve even taught that as well.

I also read South Asian fiction to get the escape I want, such as Rohinton Mistry’s A Fine Balance. Great book. The lead character really spoke to me.

TV?

I love Lost and Japanese animation.

Any heroes growing up?

Gandhi. He went to law school, gained a legal career, but then went out and got a country, so diverse, to congregate for one national cause. I find that so amazing.

What do you think are your strengths as a lawyer?

Compassion. Empathy.

What do you loathe about the law?

Bureaucracy.

If you didn’t become a lawyer, what do you think you would’ve done?

My passion has always been teaching. So if I didn’t have a care in the world, I would’ve opened up my own dance studio.