Anusha Rao (Filmmaker)

Some Lesser Known Facts About Anusha Rao

• Anusha Rao is an Indian filmmaker who is known for writing and directing the short film ‘Swarna’ that was screened in the New York Indian Film Festival (NYIFF) 2022, held from 7 May 2022 to 13 May 2022.

• She belongs to a family that does not have a background in filmmaking. In an interview, she said that when she was young, she used to watch films by Satyajit Ray, Shyam Benegal and Guru Dutt.

  

• Her sister, Archana Rao worked with the design team for the film Mahanati which was a biopic of the actress
  Savitri.

• She can fluently speak English, Hindi and Telugu language.

• She is skilled in screenwriting and video editing and has knowledge of various software like Adobe Premiere Pro, Adobe Photoshop, and Pro Tools.

• In February 2011, she worked as a marketing intern at 84ideas, Hyderabad. In August 2012, she was a volunteer at TEDx in Hyderabad. In October 2012, she volunteered for VOICE 4 Girls in Hyderabad. In 2014, she joined Arka Media Works (P) Ltd, Hyderabad as a Marketing Strategist, and worked in the marketing and international distribution team for the film Baahubali: The Beginning (2015).

  

• In 2018, she worked as a writer and director in Los Angeles for the movie ‘Left Behind.’ In December 2018, she joined Arka Mediaworks P Ltd again and worked as a Script Supervisor.

  

• In 2018, she posted a picture from her graduation on Instagram. In an interview, she talked about her experience in Los Angeles and why she returned to India, she said,
  

  Mainstream (international) movies have a way of depicting Mexicans and Black Americans… As I interacted with people, I felt we are all bound by a few commonalities. My experience in LA changed the way I think. I wanted to make films here; I think I write better when stories are rooted in Indian culture.”

  

• In 2020, during the lockdown, Anusha wrote and directed a fictional story that was based on a family of a rapist that was excluded from society. This short film was produced by filmmaker Venkatesh Maha and was screened as part of the New York Indian Film Festival (NYIFF) 2022 held from 7 May to 13 May. The actors in the film are not trained actors. While she was shooting for the film in Nizamabad, she took help from locals with the rural Telangana dialect.

• In an interview, she talked about the environment on the sets of the film and said,
  

  People in Nizamabad understood why we wanted silence on the sets. In the later portions of the film when the family discusses issues that have deeply affected them, there is a lot of silence. In the silence, we could even hear the sound of milk boiling in the house. Sound designer Nagarjun Thalapalli (who worked on Care of Kancharapalem among other films) was happy with the quality of sync sound we managed to get.”

• She is an avid dog lover and often posts pictures of them on social media.

  

• She enjoys alcoholic beverages on various occasions.

  

• She hits the gym regularly and often posts pictures on social media.