Us Illuminated Creators & Guests

Ashika Kuruvilla was born and raised in Bangalore, India. She moved to New York at the age of 15 to pursue higher education. Her passion for storytelling with the camera started early as she integrated with the challenging yet exciting new culture, people and images of New York. Her documentation of life as she saw it through the lens became the emotional bridge that helped her connect with people and life around her. This passion sparked her creativity to the point of pursuit. She studied to be a creative communicator with a BFA in Graphic Communication from Baruch College. On graduating, she worked as an Art Director with Vaynermedia. Driven by the passion to give a voice to communities, she simultaneously started a community oriented artist collective 'Viduals’ that acts as a resource and platform for emerging artists. She is presently pursuing an MFA in Documentary Filmmaking at the City College of New York. As she begins her second year at CCNY, her emerging themes are of human connection, issues of immigration, intersectionality and underrepresented communities that need a voice.