about me

desi

i am indian - north indian, hindi speaking to be specific, but i am also american. born and raised in california’s BEAUTIFUL bay area, i eventually molded into the identity of being “desi”, or someone who associates with the cultural roots of india. as any first generation kid who grew up in this mixed environment, i went through the typical culture clash of trying to embody my traditional background alongside my modern surroundings. here i was an 8 year old obsessed with archie comics and britney spears but also belted out SHAH RUKH KHAN’S romantic songs and spoke fluent hindi at home. at 14, i could literally live on pasta but desperately waited for those casual chaat (indian street snack) outings. at 19, i came home from college to make rangoli (sand art) on diwali but also adorned myself in the red white & blue for those 4th of july parades. and let’s not even get me started on listening to my 3 hour long bollywood playlist while decorating the christmas tree - you get the point. even through my 14 years of catholic school education, i never really felt an aversion to either culture, i was lucky to have both so deeply engrained in my life. i guess you could attribute all of this to my ever so adaptive parents because now in my late 20’s, i couldn’t be more proud to represent my own version of the perfect blend of an american indian. 

dancer

little did i know that the hoard of musical activities i joined from the minute i could walk would lead me to my greatest passion. starting with bollywood at age 3, then to the traditional indian form of kathak through chhandam at age 5, and breaking into the threshold of all western styles by age 13 - dance was something i revolved my entire life around. i trained daily in these various genres not knowing where i’d eventually go with it. all i knew was that the feeling of freedom it gave me couldn’t be explained. i was a pretty introverted teenager, hell, i still cherish my “me” time. the minute that i stepped onto stage under the spotlight, i transformed into characters that emulated grace, prowess, and utmost confidence. i spent over a decade as a company dancer and instructor for mona khan company where i taught students of all levels and ages, performed with industry artists, and even got to experience platforms like america’s got talent and the superbowl 50 halftime show. when i started college, i founded my university’s first and only bollywood fusion dance team in 2014, sahaara. from its inception i spent 5 years as the dance captain, choreographer, female lead, and dj, where i brought my team to compete and win multiple awards nationally. somehow that still wasn’t enough - i just wanted to dance more. i added a minor in dance where i got to train daily in modern, ballet, jazz, and choreography technique. once i graduated i knew it’d be difficult to keep up with the student schedule i was so fortunate to follow, so, i now find myself exploring the art through viral video projects, workshops, and stylized dance teams. the learning never really ends, does it?

designer

design is a passion i discovered pretty early on when i was about 12 years old and wiled away my precious monitored internet time on the website neopets.com. sure, i played games and was engrossed in the virtual world of raising my custom creatures, but it was there i first found out what html was. that’s right, i learned how to code from a kids website all because they had a handy-dandy guide available to those who lurked deep enough through the navigation panels. why i found this interesting? i have literally no idea - but, i was fascinated by the fact that i could punch in some symbols and drag points around to transform images. i very quickly downloaded the beginner freeware, gimp, and began to scratch the surface of digital media. fast forward through my amateur flyers and youtube tutorials full of teen angst, i decided to turn my passion for pixels into a career prospect. i was fortunate to attend a university that excelled in the teachings of graphic design, and it was through these resources that i decided to add it as a minor to my business marketing degree. within these courses, i developed the skills and knowledge for understanding design in a much greater context than just collages and photo retouching. now, i utilize all of this in digital content creation and brand management. diving into art history and the functionality of design really sparked my interest in moving forward; thus, my journey continues on.