words
I write essays, reported stories, and fiction exploring themes of identity, race, gender, Gen-Z, politics, and culture. Here are some of my recent bangers, with the longer discography below.
all-time faves
Teen Vogue: How Toni Morrison Transformed Me as a South Asian Writer.
Electric Literature: I Love Sally Rooney's Novels, But They Aren't Written For Me.
Teen Vogue: In Never Have I Ever Season Two, Flawed Brown Girls Are the Point.
Washington Post's The Lily: Centering my Female Friendships is a Feminist Act
Washington Post's The Lily: Interview with Maitreyi Ramakrishnan, Star of Mindy Kaling's Never Have I Ever
San Francisco Chronicle: These Bay Area artists spent the past year creating. Now their pandemic babies are ready to be born.
Refinery29: Dear Mom and Dad (Slam Poetry performance with Saida Dahir + Sam Getachew)
Refinery29: How Youth of Color Are Reimagining the Anti-Gun Violence Movement.
more essays + commentary
NYLON: When Will Women Get A Break from Hollywood's Serial Killer Obsession?
Teen Vogue: Why White Women Need to Stop Using the Word Karen
Teen Vogue: We're Teen Journalists, and We're Ending Gun Violence.
Teen Vogue: What Colorism Feels Like as an Indian-American Woman.
HuffPost: Perfectionism is a Myth, Unless You're a Young Woman of Color.
Refinery29: I'm the Daughter of Indian Immigrants, and Kamala Harris Changed the Game for All of Us.
HuffPost: How Having a Name That Nobody Can Pronounce Taught Me Who I Really Am.
Washington Post's The Lily: I'm Seventeen. Here's Why I'm Participating in the Women's March.
HuffPost: I Led My High School's Walkout to Demand Gun Reform. Here's What I Learned.
Harper's Bazaar: I'm Seventeen Years Old, and I'm Afraid For My Life.
reported
San Francisco Chronicle: 'We're Playing the Long Game': Young Bay Area organizers see a society without police as their ultimate goal
San Francisco Chronicle: Bay Area Indian Americans mobilize to send aid to COVID-affected families in India
San Francisco Chronicle: The COVID recession was harder on women. When will they rebound?
San Francisco Chronicle: S.F. Chinatown patrols met with hope, ambivalence amid attacks, bigotry against Asians
San Francisco Chronicle: Teens lead hundreds to rally against anti-Asian bigotry in Oakland
Stanford Daily: Inside the Weeks-Long Human Rights Strike at Stanford-Affiliated Hotel
Stanford Daily: With Campus Visits Cancelled, Minority Admits Struggle to Imagine Their Place at Stanford
Teen Vogue: For Pulse Shooting Survivor Stephanie Kersten, Dance is a Source of Healing
creative
YoungArts: Novel Excerpt, All The Yellow Suns (Live Reading + Musical Performance)
election 2020
Refinery29: Last Night Was a Big Night for Moms, Aunties, and Chitthis
Refinery29: What Was Hillary Clinton Trying To Tell Us With Her White Pantsuit?
Refinery29: Why AOC Nominated Bernie Sanders in Her 90-Second Speech
Refinery29: The Real Reason Michele Obama Said "I Hate Politics"
Refinery29: Why AOC and John Kasich are Trading Barbs
Refinery29: Could Joe Biden's National Mask Mandate Become a Reality?