Avantika (She/Her) developed a passion for storytelling through her grandmother's tales of grief and longing, spending her childhood in the Himalayan region of India. This early exposure sparked her fascination with recording life stories. Starting in journalism, Avantika wrote for renowned magazines and served as the India Correspondent for France 24, covering tragic events like Indonesia's devastating Tsunami in 2018. Her journey led her to write for the Los Angeles Times and later into documentary filmmaking, collaborating with channels such as Channel News Asia, Arte, France 2, M6, and Al Jazeera.

Her profound connection to oral history emerged when she documented the stories of over 100 survivors of the Partition of India (1947). She contributed to a documentary film and the 1947 Partition Archive through these interviews. Her encounters with mass migration victims awakened similar themes of stories she had heard as a child, revealing the power of oral history in capturing trauma and grief.

As a professional for the past eight years, she has recorded various narratives encompassing family histories, migration, trauma, violence, disasters, and human rights. Recently, she ventured into communication for the development sector, utilizing oral history to document stories of resilience. She also imparts training to leading non-profits in India, teaching the ethical collection of impactful stories. In her last project, she conceptualized and wrote a family history book on the life history of a renowned industrialist and social worker in North-East India. Apart from this, she is building an archive on the loss of her grandfather, documenting generational trauma. The ongoing project has been exhibited at the London Centre for Interdisciplinary Research and the India International Centre.

With an educational background from prestigious Indian institutions like the University of Delhi and the Asian College of Journalism, she has cultivated a growing interest in psychology. She holds a certificate in Narrative Therapy from the Dulwich Centre. Outside work, she indulges in portrait photography, creative writing, dancing, and volunteers at a suicide prevention helpline.