I am an assistant professor in the Department of Communication at the University of Minnesota, Duluth, I teach and research within the fields of health communication and mass media.

I am originally from Goa, India, but have lived most of my life in Bangalore, a city in the south-central India. I graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree from Mount Carmel College, Bangalore University, afterwhich I jumped right into the Indian dotcom bubble. I worked as a writer and information architect for two years, but after the second start-up I worked with imploded, I knew it was time to leave.

I completed an M.A. in Media, Technology, and Society at Purdue University exploring several avenues simultaneously. I worked with my advisor Dr. John Sherry on video game research and my thesis examined the portrayal of relationship conflict on television.

During the latter half of the program, I found myself increasingly drawn to the area of Health Communication and critical/interpretive methodologies for conducting research. Health Communication hit closer to home because it allowed me to study the complex intersection of health, culture, and socio-economic marginalization. Under the direction of Dr. Mohan Dutta, my dissertation explored the nexus between non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and HIV/AIDS community programs in India. The goal of this (ongoing) project is to identify the discursive constructions and material practices and processes that constitute "empowerment".