During the last school year, some 104,000 New York City public school children lacked permanent housing- meaning 1 in 10 students were homeless.
Thousands of children lived in homeless shelters, were “doubled up,” aka living with other families, were unsheltered in cars, abandoned buildings, or out on the streets.
My latest film Homeroom Dreams is about Riverdale Avenue Middle School in Brownsville, Brooklyn, where 18% of the student population lacks permanent housing. Despite a broken system, limited budgets and crumbling infrastructure, Principal Pembroke and her staff along with parents are doing all that they can to help the students cope with these challenges and to create a safe and supportive second home at school.
Every child should have a right to education and housing. If New York City is the city of dreams, why are we letting down our children?
A massive thank you to @riverdale_avenue_middleschool and Principal @drbelle for letting me hang around school and trusting me to tell this story 🏫
FULL FILM IN BIO 🔗
#housingcrisis #homelessness #homelesscrisis #newyorkcity #homeless #nycpublicschools #studentlife #sth #studentsintemporaryhousing #unhoused #housingfirst #ericadams #doe #departmentofeducation #nycschools #brooklyn #brownsville #middleschool #teenage #endhomelessness #endhomelessnessnow
It’s been so amazing running BRICLab Film + TV with @cthoxie to support filmmakers @ashgohhua , @manseepants , @andrewnadkarni and their incredible documentary films. Last week we concluded our residency with an exclusive screening and talkback at @bricbrooklyn followed by a little party. It was so fun! Very excited to follow the journeys of these films and to keep supporting non fiction storytelling in whatever way or form 🎥
Applications are now OPEN for BRICLab Film & TV 2023-24. Spread the world and apply now 🎞️
#documentaryfilm #documentarylab #newyorkcity #film #filmscreening #briclab #filmandtv #filmmakers #nycartscene #filmlab #producerlife #livetv
It was so fun being back IN PERSON at The New York Women in Film & Television’s MUSE awards 2023! One of the first times I had a public showcase of one of my films was at a NYWFT film festival years ago and I’ll always be grateful for that because it gave me confidence and validation back then when I was in between visas and unsure about my future making documentaries in America. But here I am wearing this gorgeous hand embroidered Kashmiri jacket (that took 9 months to make) and feeling happy being a part of this powerful community of NYC women in media who are changing the world ! @nywift #museawards #newyorkwomeninfilmandtelevision #womenfilmmakers #newyorkcity
I still can’t believe it’s been a month since my best friends married each other and we partied for 96 hours straight. Here is to @aishanipurky and @i.am.king.george who together make #KiJosh aka the most beautiful and fun vibes in the whole wide world. I love you both and I’m very happy to take the credit for making the two of you meet 15 years ago at a random KFC on a Friday night. The rest as they say is HISTORY❤️
How lucky am I that I get to explore the world with you and also get to come home to you. I get to wake up and crawl to your bed on a Sunday morning and pass out on the couch with you after eating too much desert. I get to watch sunsets with you at home in our beloved Kolkata, across different continents as well as our own Brooklyn rooftop. I get to call you my BFF, my roomie and my family. Living life with you is so much fun, so easy and so peaceful. Happy birthday my little V! I’ve known you for 22 years now and I can’t wait to spend the rest of my life dancing away with you ☀️🌈💕🍄🧿 Also publicly acknowledging @sanjanaray03 ‘s amazing taste in choosing a best friend for life because I get to share her!
I got to end 2022 and bring in 2023 with my oldest + bestest friends in my favorite place ! How lucky am I to be surrounded with so much joy 💗 It’s almost time to go back to Brooklyn and I miss these faces already 🥹🧿 #KiJosh
