Film Forum

Sakhi for South Asian Survivors is a community-based organization founded in 1989 in New York City. We exist to represent the South Asian and Indo-Caribbean diaspora in a survivor-led movement for gender justice and to honor the collective and inherent power of all survivors of violence.

Shuchi Talati is a filmmaker from India whose work challenges dominant narratives around gender, sexuality, and South Asian identity. Her feature film, GIRLS WILL BE GIRLS, premiered in competition at Sundance where it won an Audience Award and a Special Jury Award. The film has been a recipient of Aide Aux Cinémas du Monde and Sørfond grants, and the ArteKINO and VFF Talent Award at the Berlinale Co-Production Market. It has also been selected for Gotham Week, Berlinale Script Station and Cine Qua Non Script Lab. Her short film, Period Piece, about an afternoon of period sex, was selected for SXSW. Mae and Ash won numerous awards before becoming a Vimeo Staff Pick. Shuchi is an alum of Berlinale Talents, and her work has also been recognized by the New York State Council for the Arts and Région Île-de-France. She is a graduate of the American Film Institute. She lives in NYC and is a member of the Brooklyn Filmmakers Collective, the Bitchitra Collective and the Freelance Solidarity Project.

Sucharita Tyagi is a prominent Indian film critic who now splits her time between Mumbai and New York. With nearly 10 years of experience as a film critic, she is best known for her popular movie reviews on YouTube, where she has built a community of dedicated fans. Tyagi also has extensive experience in broadcast radio. With a unique voice, she reviews films and discusses South Asian pop culture with honesty and passion through a contemporary, feminist lens, breaking down complex issues in relatable ways.

Although a proud New Yorker, Pooja Raj-Green traces her roots back to Punjab, India. She graduated from Columbia University with a Masters in Social Work, with a focus on Clinical Social Work in International Social Welfare, in 2014. She discovered her calling to the Gender Justice movement first as a Social Work Intern at Sakhi in 2013 re-joined the team as a Counselor in February 2019. In her passion to bring culturally affirming and accessible counseling services to the diaspora, Pooja led Sakhi’s Counseling Program and envisioned family mental health services at Sakhi. Currently, Pooja vigorously leads Sakhi’s Direct Services team in efforts to support survivors and the larger community in accessing holistic services as well as gender justice. She is fluent in Punjabi, Hindi, and Urdu. In addition to dreaming of obtaining a PhD in Intergenerational Trauma, Pooja enjoys dancing, being lost in her reading nook and secretly hopes to finally learn to swim this year while taking lessons with her toddler. (He is learning quicker than she is.)

Supported by a Humanities New York Action Grant

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