Film Forum

Nisha Pahuja is an Emmy-nominated filmmaker based in Toronto. Her latest film, TO KILL A TIGER, had its world premiere at TIFF where it won the Amplify Voices Award for Best Canadian Feature Film. Since then, it’s won 19 awards including Best Documentary Feature, Palm Springs International Film Festival and three Canadian Screen awards. The film grew out of a long career of addressing various human rights issues, notably violence against women in India. In 2015, she won the Amnesty International media award for Canadian journalism after making a short film about the Delhi bus gang rape for Global News. Pahuja’s other past credits include the multi-award-winning THE WORLD BEFORE HER (2012 Best Documentary Feature, Jury Award Winner, Tribeca Film Festival; Best Canadian Documentary, Hot Docs; TIFF’s Canada’s Top Ten; Best Documentary nominee, Canadian Screen Awards, the series Diamond Road (2008 Gemini Award for Best Documentary Series) and BOLLYWOOD BOUND (2002 Gemini Award nominee).
 
Academy Award and Primetime Emmy Award nominee and BAFTA Award winner Dev Patel, catapulted to success in 2008 when he starred in the Academy Award-winning film SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE directed by Danny Boyle. Oscar nominated for his role in Garth Davis’ LION, Patel took home the BAFTA Award for “Best Supporting Actor” along with numerous accolades. Most recent credits include THE GREEN KNIGHT for director David Lowery and THE PERSONAL HISTORY OF DAVID COPPERFIELD. He will next be seen in Wes Anderson’s feature film THE WONDERFUL STORY OF HENRY SUGAR based on the book by Roald Dahl. Patel will make his directorial debut with an original script for which he co-wrote and stars, called MONKEY MAN, which he produced alongside Thunder Road.

Kavita Mehra first joined Sakhi as an intern in 2002 while in her third year of university. After her experience, she hoped to come back to Sakhi, specifically to lead the organization, and in June 2017 was named its sixth executive director. Under Kavita’s leadership, Sakhi has grown 375% and has launched a trauma-informed mental health program, a housing program, and a food justice program for survivors in the community. Her deep commitment to building a survivor-centered movement, positioned Sakhi to open its second office in Queens, NY in March of 2020 and its third office in Brooklyn, NY in 2023. Most notably, Kavita has successfully stewarded Sakhi through the COVID-19 pandemic, providing critical, life-saving services to survivors across New York City, while also ensuring its financial stability and growth. While in her role at Sakhi, Kavita was instrumental in convening her fellow co-founders of South Asian SOAR and securing the $1million in seed funding for its launch. She is now a proud board member of the organization that represents 40+ South Asian member organizations across the United States. Kavita has written opinion pieces for Inside Philanthropy, City Limits, Ms. Magazine, the Huffington Post, Brown Girl Magazine, and Act To Change. She has also presented at the Women’s Economic Forum in Delhi, Harvard University and Columbia University and has been quoted in leading media outlets, including The Associated Press, The Takeaway with Tanzina Vega, NowThis, CNN, The New York Times, and Vice. Through her over two decades in the non-profit sector, Kavita has served in leadership positions at the Boys & Girls Club of Newark, GlamourGals Foundation, and South Asian Youth Action. She has been featured in “Roshni: Emerging Indian Global Leaders" and is the recipient of the 2021 Changemaker Award from Institute for Nonprofit Practice, 2022 Social Impact Women to Watch by Nonprofit HR and in 2023 received the Epic Women’s Award from the New York Bar Association. Kavita completed her Bachelor of Arts from New York University with a double major in History and Gender Studies. She also holds a Master of Arts in Liberal Studies, with a concentration in South Asian Studies, from Columbia University, as well as a certificate in Business Excellence from The Columbia Business School. She is currently part of the Allstate Foundation’s Nonprofit Leadership Center Executive Leadership Program’s Class of 2023 at Northwestern’s Kellogg School of Management. In 2016, Kavita completed the Boys & Girls Clubs of America Advanced Leadership Program and in 2014, she was a Lead New Jersey Fellow and an Athena Mastermind at Barnard. In 2013, Kavita was a New Leaders Council-New Jersey Fellow. A proud New Jersey native, she lives in Jersey City with her life partner and son.

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