Born in Sofia, raised in New Delhi & Fiji, and nurtured in Singapore and Johannesburg; Sunanda is a writer-journalist. In a previous avatar Sunanda was a TV News Producer. She enjoys deciphering cultural codes of communication across nationalities, age groups and gender. She celebrates inspiration, and her writings take stories beyond geographical, cultural, social or religious boundaries. Currently, Sunanda proudly calls Singapore home.
Sunanda has authored all eleven titles in the Namaste, Series of books which are bringing diversity into international school curricula around the world. Sunanda has also co-authored the best-selling Hindi-English Thematic Visual Dictionary.
Travel and parenting articles have connected Sunanda to global audiences through print and digital platforms. Her ability to transcend borders and see the universality of goodness and human aspirations have endeared her to readers. Living at an early age in Bulgaria and Fiji and then later in Singapore and South Africa, triggered in Sunanda a keen interest in the cultural and linguistic yearnings of the Indian diaspora. Her writings connect Indian diaspora with India and among each other in a way that celebrates a higher oneness.
Speaking Hindi in a family of Hindi language doyens, Sunanda grew up around the world conversing in English outside home. By the time she completed her Master’s degree in English at the University of Delhi, she had discovered a flair for translating prose and poetry from Hindi into English and vice versa. Works translated by Sunanda continue to enjoy both critical as well as commercial success.
A gift for storytelling evolved into documentary film making as Sunanda completed her Post-Master’s studies in Journalism at the Indian Institute of Mass Communication (IIMC), New Delhi. Her thesis documentary on ‘Child Adoption’ won her the top honours at the IIMC in 1999. Since, Sunanda has scripted and directed documentaries on a wide range of topics such as – Civil Society & Giving (Singapore), Family Philanthropy (India), Sports & Mentorship (Morocco), Hindi as a national language (India), Patient safety (Australia).
Sunanda feels a strong commitment to give back to the global pool of knowledge by building in youngsters a sense of purpose. Sunanda speaks to a wide audience at author events and festivals about her experiences of finding, crafting and publishing inspiring stories. A global citizen herself, Sunanda is much sought for her innate ability to connect with multi-cultural audiences of different age groups. Audiences leave her talks feeling inspired and empowered.
Sunanda continues her journey with gratitude to
