I’m a Toronto-based writer, director and picture editor whose work encompasses both comedy and drama and often focuses on the inner struggles of socially anxious South Asian women. Many first-generation Canadians personally connected with my short romantic dramedy The Pits, about a young woman who struggles with the pungent smell of Indian food. The film screened at 15 festivals worldwide and won three audience choice awards. My most recent short Fan Girl also resonated with festival audiences in North America. The tense drama about celebrity worship was shot at the Fairmont Royal York Hotel in downtown Toronto and funded by Canada Council for the Arts.

My favourite stage of the filmmaking process is post-production. I spent 13 years working as a producer and an editor (mostly as an editor) in newsrooms, including The Canadian Press, HuffPost Canada and Entertainment Tonight Canada. I love scripted storytelling and I edit all of my own narrative work. I’ve collaborated as a picture editor with horror filmmaker Bronwyn Szabo, author/filmmaker Marlowe Granados, and writer/producer pair Rabiya Mansoor and Shreya Patel.

I hold a Bachelor of Fine Arts in film production from Toronto’s York University and a Master of Arts in journalism from Western University in London, Ontario. Currently, I produce, shoot and edit Smita’s Eats, an Indian vegetarian cooking YouTube series starring my talented mom.