NYWIFT Blog

Meet the New NYWIFT Member: Mohana Rajakumar

By Ozzi Ramirez

Welcome to NYWIFT, Mohana Rajakumar! Mohana is a South Asian American scholar, novelist, screenwriter, and stand-up comic whose work regularly explores feminist themes. Some of her most notable literary accomplishments include winning the She Writes New Novelist Award in 2011 for her coming-of-age novel An Unlikely Goddess and the Best Indie Book Award for Romance in 2013 for Love Comes Later.

Additionally, Mohana’s work has been featured in AudioFile Magazine, Explore Qatar, and Woman Today. And her one-woman show Being Brown is My Superpower was accepted to the Edinburgh Fringe and United Solo Festivals. She co-wrote and appeared in the short film Me Against the World, directed by Kali Bailey, which appeared in NYWIFT’s “Women in Film Night” at the 2022 Montauk Film Festival.

Mohana has resided in Qatar since 2005.

She spoke to us about working across various art forms, her writing process, and the special honor that comes with writing a banned book!

 

NYWIFT member Mohana Rajakumar

 

Tell us about yourself – give us your elevator pitch!

I’m a novelist turned screenwriter who was bored during the pandemic and started adapting my own stories into screenplays.

 

You’ve explored many avenues in your career! As an artist, scholar, novelist, screenwriter, and stand-up comic what are some of the recurring themes in your work?

I tell women-centric stories that occur in unusual settings. Regardless of what genre I’m writing in and whether it’s in the form of a joke, novel, or film script, my audiences can experience what it means to be brown and female in a supposedly post-racial era.

 

NYWIFT member Mohana Rajakumar

 

How is your creative process influenced by the art form that you are immersed in at any given moment? What are the similarities and differences between developing a novel, play and comedy sketch?

The process is sort of the same – I sit at the desk and bleed a little! Haha! No seriously. Writing is a solitary task and while I’m an extrovert, I spend a lot of time alone outlining, brainstorming, and planning. And then there is the actual writing itself.

All of my work starts with a central question: What’s it like to be a modern person with traditional values (my romance series)? Or what if an aspiring journalist stumbled into a terrorist recruitment network (my crime thriller)? The script or book then becomes the answer.

 

Your novel Love Comes Later, which deals with the subject of arranged marriages, was praised in some circles while also banned in your home country of Qatar. What was your initial response to the controversy? 

Being banned is a special mark of distinction as an artist. It means that your work is fresh, relevant, and interesting. I took it as the highest compliment. Books are banned in the Middle East all the time – and increasingly in the United States. I hope this inspires people to keep reading. 

 

NYWIFT Member Mohana Rajakumar on set

 

What brings you to NYWIFT?

I’m a female filmmaker who is relatively new to the industry, so NYWIFT has been a great way to learn more about what opportunities are out there, network, and in general, make a big pond feel a lot smaller.

 

How did the pandemic influence your work experience?

One of the pandemic’s silver linings was having my whole family forced into the house with me. I needed my own mental space and a new way to get a creative boost. I got both of these things by taking on the new and creative challenge of understanding how scripts work.

The energy and interest required while adapting a short story into a script helped propel me through one of the most uncertain times in modern history. Writing can be like that!

 

Do you have any upcoming projects in the works?

I am currently developing my feature and revising many other scripts. I’m also the director of a short film lab for teen girls that creates more opportunities for women in the industry from the ground up. 

 

Connect with Mohana Rajakumar on her website www.mohadoha.com and on Twitter @moha_doha.

 

Additional reporting by Katie Chambers

PUBLISHED BY

Ozzi Ramirez

Ozzi Ramirez Ozzi Ramirez is a current intern at NYWIFT and aspiring film producer and programmer. He studied English Literature and Theater at the University of Vermont and later received a Master's Degree in Mass Communications from Florida International University in Miami. Having moved to NYC in 2019, his interests include moseying through Manhattan with his headphones on full blast, most dogs and cats, coffee, discovering good deals on theater tickets, politics, traveling, and of course, experiencing great storytelling through movies, TV shows, and books.

View all posts by Ozzi Ramirez

Comments are closed

Related Posts

Meet the New NYWIFT Member: Alex Kokenis

Welcome to NYWIFT, Alex Kokenis! Alex Kokenis (she/her) is a queer filmmaker and editor living in Brooklyn, NY. Her last short film, A Pickle and a Coke, is currently in its festival run, recently winning Best Script at Chicago Film Frenzy. Through her production company, It’s a Long Story Productions, Alex has co-written and co-directed two short films, Wednesday, and The Root, as well as directed and edited music videos. When she is not creating her own work, she is a passionate editor and loves to bring others’ stories to life. Alex is currently an Assistant Editor for narrative features and a proud member of IATSE Local 700. She cites Steven Soderbergh and the Duplass Brothers as her main inspirations for storytelling. She loves a good vest and to go bowling.

READ MORE

Meet the New NYWIFT Member: Sara Newton

Welcome to NYWIFT, Sara Newton! Sara is a director and cinematographer based in New York and Los Angeles. She is the creator of the MDR Sketch Comedy Show on PBS and has recently returned from an expedition in Antarctica, where she filmed a documentary. Her digital comedy sketches, produced under brands like Made by Tom and Sara, Nightpantz, and Conservation Comedy, have collectively garnered over 5 million views. With a strong foundation in television production, Sara has coordinated hit reality shows such as Love & Hip Hop (VH1), Bridezillas (WEtv), and Nellyville (BET). Her extensive experience in physical production led her to spend six years at Gunpowder & Sky, where she managed production across various platforms and developed sizzle reels for network pitches. Additionally, she served as the cinematographer for the experimental film Dust Flow: A Meditative Experience, also produced by Gunpowder & Sky. As of 2025, Sara is Head of Content for the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society and is set to direct a feature film this fall. Sara shares her journey as an unconventional storyteller who is not afraid to explore new platforms and storytelling formats.

READ MORE

Meet the New NYWIFT Member: Stephanie Lynn Jones

Welcome to NYWIFT, Stephanie Lynn Jones! Stephanie is a filmmaker, TV writer, and multi-disciplinary creative with two decades in screen and stage storytelling. She directed the short doc memoir The Jones Twins: Bebop Souls in a Muzak™ World (BRIC TV) and launched her film career on Spike Lee’s production teams. An Emmy nominee for Nickelodeon’s Gullah Gullah Island, she has developed her own TV projects with Universal Kids, PBS Kids, and TIME Studios.  With her twin, Suzanne, The Jones Twins’ performance work has appeared at major venues in NYC and beyond; they also lent their vocals to the Slamdance Festival award-winning film System Noise. Stephanie holds a B.A. from Howard University and an MFA from NYU Tisch. Read on to get to know Stephanie, learn about her roots in the industry, and get a preview of her short documentary film, The Jones Twins!

READ MORE

Meet the New NYWIFT Member: Elizabeth K. Budion

Welcome to NYWIFT, Elizabeth K. Budion! A member of SAG-AFTRA since 2014, Elizabeth got her taste of the film industry by doing background and stand-in work for notable shows such as Orange is the New Black, Broad City, How to Be Single, and The Path. After several years in that space, she dabbled in casting for shows such as Law & Order: SVU, before switching gears to join the Peace Corps in 2018.  While living in The Gambia, she focused on elevating the societal status of women, expanding their horizons and potential through education. Elizabeth also built a library and wrote various water grants, while learning the local language of Wolof. Returning to the states in 2020, Elizabeth then received her Master's from New York University, in Global Affairs with a focus on international development and women’s rights.  Returning to film, Elizabeth recently wrote, produced, and edited a short animated film titled You. Matter.. starring Tony Award winner Laura Benanti. In addition, Elizabeth is currently collaborating with her filmmaker husband to pen a feature titled RetroViewer. When not working on films, Elizabeth enjoys having new adventures with her adorable 16-month-old son Louis Joseph, or “LouJay!” Read on to learn more about Elizabeth, how she got started in the film industry, and her experience in the Peace Corps!

READ MORE
JOIN OUR NEWSLETTER
css.php