MEET THE TEAM

Dheeraj is a media professional with a keen interest in studying visual mediums. He holds an MBA in Development Management from SPJIMR, Mumbai, and a Master’s in Media and Cultural Studies from TISS, Mumbai.

He has led media and communications initiatives for prominent non-profits such as Pratham Education, the National Skill Development Corporation, DLF Foundation, and Tech Mahindra Foundation. His work focuses on leveraging the power of storytelling and visual communication for social change.

Mumbai-based Playwright, Screenwriter, Director and Educator — Nikhita works around themes of gender and culture, across theatre, film, and digital media.

She’s the Founder of Parwana Theatre (a Mumbai-based theatre and performing arts collective), and Co-founder & CCO of the Centre for Contemporary Folklore (a non-profit working towards preserving, promoting, and celebrating India’s diverse and rich folk culture).

Outside of theatre, her portfolio ranges from research, writing, and executive production of several YouTube shows for Girl Effect India’s Chhaa Jaa to writing podcasts, animation, and digital learning modules for Chambal Media and Khabar Lahariya. She was also a Senior Researcher with Amazon Prime and BBC Studios for their true-crime documentary series, ‘Wedding.Con’.

She has co-directed the award-winning short documentary – ‘Behind The Bazaar’, is the Creator & Co-Director of ‘Didi ki Rasoi’, a cooking show-style podcast about the lives of domestic workers who work as cooks in Mumbai, and Director of the ParrotHouse Podcast which platforms lesser-known folklore from diverse regions of India.

She has taught Theatre & Stagecraft at Mumbai University’s Wilson College, and holds an M.A. degree in Media & Cultural Studies from the Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai, and a B.A. degree with Honours in Sociology from Maitreyi College, University of Delhi.

With a Master’s Degree in Sociology from JNU and a Bachelor’s Degree in History from St. Stephen’s College, Pauline discovers a fulfilling intersection of history and society in the study of folklore. A strong advocate for equal opportunities and accessible spaces, she passionately believes in the urgency of preserving ones cultural heritage.

Medha Mitra, a design student at NIFT Kannur, enjoys illustrating stories through stationery and character-driven narratives. Fond of visual storytelling and UI/UX design, she runs a creative venture, Paper Treats, where she translates personal stories into thoughtful caricatures. Her work emphasises human-centric visuals and intuitive digital experiences rooted in the everyday.

Harsh Haldonkar is a product designer based in Goa, whose work and interests centre around culture, empathy and community. He strongly believes in creating spaces and platforms to bring out the voices of the marginalised and the needy.

Angel is a graduate of English and Psychology, and is looking to pursue a Master’s degree in English. She is a lover of cats, coffee and stories—both telling & reading them. While at the moment she is content with being a full-time reader and some-times writer, she dreams of one day becoming a teacher, hoping her stories can reach out to an audience of those who need it most. At CCF, she aims to learn more about folklore, what it means to preserve something of a dynamic nature, and how these tales shift over time and space.

I am an illustrator and visual storyteller currently pursuing Animation and Digital Media at UID, Gandhinagar. My work draws inspiration from Indian myths, culture, and traditions. I aim to reinterpret and reintroduce these rich narratives to contemporary audiences, making them more accessible and engaging.

Kanishka is a visual artist and communication design student currently studying at NIFT Gandhinagar. Believing that a story is worth infinite experiences, Kanishka values the folktales told by their grandmother and hopes to spread the feeling of belonging they experience when listening to folktales from their hometown.