Tell us about yourself. I was born in the Bay Area and lived here until I was 13, when my family moved to Bangalore, India. Nowadays I live in San Francisco. I have loved history, reading, and telling stories through dance and writing since my earliest memories. History has helped me see the hidden stories in the world around me, and put my life experiences in context. I did my M.A. in South Asian History at Tufts University. I have spent my career working on youth education and entertainment. I previously worked as the Executive Director of Camp Kahani (now part of the Banyan Tree family), Director of Education & Partnerships at South Asian Youth Action in NYC, Senior Researcher for Adobe Education, and Product Manager at Rebel Girls, a feminist kids media company. My greatest joy is encountering a well-told story that changes the way I see the world - and watching a young person find their unique voice in the face of life’s ups and downs, just as I try to everyday.

What motivates you to be part of the Banyan Tree? It has been my dream for a long time to create a South Asian community center that allows every single person who enters our doors to authentically thrive, and experience genuine belonging. I feel blessed to get to create this with this amazing group of humans.

If you could be a potato, how would you be prepared? I would be the masala filling in a crispy Bangalore dosa, coated with spicy chutney podi and ghee, and regularly dipped in sambar and excessively nutty peanut chutney.

What is Tara’s superpower? From Niv.

Tell us about yourself. My love for stories, telling and hearing them, began as a child when I learned dance (Bharathanatyam) and told stories of the Gods. I began to see stories everywhere. In the Sri Lankan Tamil foods my mother would cook me, in strangers around my small Floridian town, in the shapes of the stars. As I grew older, I began to see what stories were missing as well—what stories I had to work harder to find. The desire to find stories that reflected my life and to learn of new stories my life had never touched fuels my passion for Camp Kahani as well as my work as an undergraduate university instructor and social science researcher. I am currently pursuing a Ph.D. in Communication at the University of South Florida, exploring resistance, resilience, and storytelling in Bharatanatyam. I love painting, films, astronomy, romance novels, the ocean, and trying everything new - food and experiences!

What motivates you to be part of the Banyan Tree? [insert here]

If you could be a potato, how would you be prepared? I would want to be a messy hot baked potato filled to the brim with spices, sour cream, cheese, and any other tasty ingredient that want to join the party.

What is Niv’s superpower? From Tara.

It all begins with an idea. Maybe you want to launch a business. Maybe you want to turn a hobby into something more. Or maybe you have a creative project to share with the world. Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.