We recently connected with Karishma Devnani and have shared our conversation below.
Karishma , so good to have you with us today. We’ve got so much planned, so let’s jump right into it. We live in such a diverse world, and in many ways the world is getting better and more understanding but it’s far from perfect. There are so many times where folks find themselves in rooms or situations where they are the only ones that look like them – that might mean being the only woman of color in the room or the only person who grew up in a certain environment etc. Can you talk to us about how you’ve managed to thrive even in situations where you were the only one in the room?
It took me a very long time to realize that no matter how many people are in a room, they will never be me. There is no one like me no matter how many similarities I have with your best friend or the stranger I met today. Yes. I am the only one that is me and will ever be. My perspective and background are unique even though I come from a country that a lot of people have opinions about. It is very challenging and out of my comfort zone because all my life I have lived with my parents and now suddenly I go to another country where I don’t know anyone or anything. I have to figure everything out on my own. But I have chosen to embrace my individuality, use it as my strength and use these magic qualities which sets me apart as a part of my journey.
Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?
Ever since I was a child the only thing that has stayed consistent is the aspect of storytelling. I can almost say that “Storytelling” is what taught me the definition of love.
I used to make these short videos for my family’s birthday by editing a few photos and turning them into birthday greeting. Anything that’s related to art – I love, be it – painting, learning softwares that taught me how to draw, motion graphics and more. That’s when I knew filmmaking was my calling. I am so grateful that I discovered what I wanted to do very early on in my life however the journey? It wasn’t that easy. I was an extreme introvert when I graduated from my high school and there was pressure from my parents to either be a lawyer or an account because filmmaking was not a serious career.
When I started my BFA in filmmaking, my mother and I had fights every single day for the first years of my course (yep, she wasn’t very happy about her daughter entering the film industry) but something changed after the 2nd year, she saw how serious I was about it. She watched the projects I worked on, how I would work hard to be able to do more projects and that was it. Ever, since then she’s always been looking forward to my work. All of this to say that – it was the beginning of chasing my dreams until I achieved what I wanted.
My purpose through storytelling is to reminder people how important mental health, breaking stereotypes and diversity is. My previous work includes stories about dynamics of relationships, mental health, diversity, emotions and much more. I want to tell stories that touch people’s heart and provoke them to think about things that we generally don’t talk about which brings me to I recently short my thesis film which is a proof of concept for my feature film called “Lost Lullabies”. It’s about a Korean American botanist who returns home for her mother’s wedding but now she has to confront all her childhood traumas that she experienced from her alcoholic abusive father.
So here’s my soft launch of two short films that I am currently working on – Lost Lullabies and Breaking Pointe: which is about a ballerina redefining success on her own terms. Both these shorts are low budget but they are extremely close to my heart and to anyone to is reading this – please keep going. Don’t give up yet. It will all come together one day.
With that I hope you all look out for more updates for these two shorts and many more projects to come!
There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?
Authenticity, perseverance and communication were the qualities that were most impactful. If 5 years ago I was talking about this I could have never told you about these three qualities because I was super impatient and pretended to be someone I wasn’t, to be completely honest with you it got me nowhere. Only when I decided to embrace my authenticity and started communicating was only when I grew more than I could have ever imagined.
It’s very difficult to be authentic and find out what authentic means to you when the entire world tells you what to do and what not to do. So my advice would be – yes, listen to what people have to say but you don’t have to follow the same steps as theirs because we are all different and that’s what makes us unique. When I embraced my authentic self I realized that it not only helped me build deeper connections but it also boosted my self esteem.
Let’s be honest, the world and life isn’t exactly the easiest place and just like the movies we have more conflict in our lives than the movies but we can’t let those conflicts also stop us from achieving our dreams, right? Much later in life I realized how Perseverance can lead to success and trust me since then even when it’s difficult I have decided to break any barriers and obstacles that block my path. You have the power to achieve everything you want.
Therefore my advice to anyone out there who is going through the journey of achieving their dreams would be – just keep going. You’ll get there soon.
Awesome, really appreciate you opening up with us today and before we close maybe you can share a book recommendation with us. Has there been a book that’s been impactful in your growth and development?
To be honest, there isn’t one. The more I think about it the more books I can name, however, the three books that were the most valuable were Atomic Habits by James Clear, Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert & The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde.
Atomic Habit taught me that small steps lead to big impact in our lives and how I shouldn’t expect changes overnight because success does not happen overnight but rather it is the accumulation of small and consistent actions.
Big Magic taught me that never stop moving and that if we fail it’s just a redirection so not to dwell on it but to keep moving forward.
The Picture of Dorian Gray (literally one of my favorite classics) taught me to embrace all of me – the good, the bad and the ugly, taking responsibility for my own choices and that the true worth lies in one’s character.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://karishmaariid.wixsite.com/my-site
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ariiisartsy/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/karishmadevnani-editor-producer/
Image Credits
1. Vyshnav Baburaj
2. Valery Li
3. Kushagra Jain
so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.
