Anu Agarwal

Co-FOUNDER/CURATOR

Anuradha Basu Agarwal is a social entrepreneur based in Dallas, TX. Over her 20 + years working with artisans and craftsmen at the grassroots level, Anuradha has been passionately advocating handicrafts of India, creating products to protect traditional skills and reviving the dying arts in artisan clusters. Her company, Shastra Home, and her clothing brand, One Society, have been propagating fair trade principles and advocating for the empowerment of grassroots- level artisans. In 2003, Anuradha created Living Dreams Foundation, an NGO to promote women-led livelihood programs for poverty reduction and empowerment. She also was appointed by UNICEF and The World Bank to travel to Afghanistan, Bhutan, Uganda, Madagascar, Ghana and Swaziland to jury and train women producers in product design and development.

Anuradha grew up in Jamshedpur and Calcutta and holds a Master’s degree in International Relations from Jadavpur University, Calcutta. and a Master’s degree in Communication from SUNY, Albany. Before moving to the US, Anuradha worked as the Calcutta Correspondent for a magazine group based out of Bombay.

Jitin Hingorani

Co-FOUNDER/Executive Director

Ever since he was young, Jitin has had a love for the arts. Whether it was performing lead roles in high school plays or leading his University of Texas at Austin college speech team to win the national championship two years in a row as Captain, public speaking and performance has been in his blood. As an arts and entertainment reporter for a mainstream tv channel, Jitin covered the symphony, opera and theater in Austin. He then went on to work as a Senior Publicist for New York’s PBS affiliate, WNET, managing the PR for shows like Great Performances & Sunday Arts. His own PR company, JINGO Media, focuses on film, arts, entertainment and fashion, and he started Dallas’ first-ever South Asian Film Festival (DFW SAFF) four years ago.

Jitin is still an entertainment reporter and anchor for America’s leading Bollywood program, Asian Variety Show, with 66 million viewers in 120 countries around the world.

Ambica Dev

Artistic Director

Ambica Dev is the Artistic Director for the DFW South Asian Film Festival and now DIAC. Hailing from the Midwest, she is a proud Boilermaker with extensive experience in coordinating events. She also travels to different film festivals worldwide to curate films. Growing up, she has been an avid Bollywood/Independent Film water and is excited to help provide a much-needed platform in Dallas for others to enjoy indian arts. 

Nisha Bhatt

Communications Director

Nisha Bhatt is a Visual & UX Designer and Event Coordinator. Growing up, she moved around the states a lot & art was one of her & her family's bright threads of inspiration. She uses these influences to inspire her work & propel her within a large creative scope. Nisha has worked with companies such as MR Youth, BlackBerry, Victory Dog Design & The Austin Film Festival doing graphic design, marketing, event planning, and PR liaison. In addition to growing her own Design business, she is a founding member of Cascadia International Women’s Film Festival. As a proponent of art and cultural awareness, Nisha is excited to be a part of the incredible DIAC team and to continue celebrating South Asian Art.

Vineeta Bhargava

founding member

Vineeta Solanki Bhargava was born in the midst of a thriving artistic culture in Lucknow, India and grew up appreciating all forms of art. She joined Darpan, a
Lucknow-based theater company, as an actor and contributed to a production that won the company the President’s Award. Vineeta ignited her passion for service in 1983 when she started Manushi, a non-profit aimed at helping women in need by fighting the practice of giving and receiving dowries. Throughout her years in
America, Vineeta has worked for and contributed to multiple nonprofits in Indianapolis and Dallas, such as Pratham and Ekal Vidyalaya. In 2004, she joined the
ThinkIndia Foundation executive board, furthering the foundation’s mission to raise money for schools in India. She also took part in the many productions that
ThinkIndia produced, contributing artistically to the foundation’s vision. Today, along with continuing her artistic ventures and personal habits of service, she also
supports charities through her Montessori school business. Vineeta works everyday to impact her community through creative means, making art and service integral parts of her life.

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