Senior Trisha Akhare’s breath caught in her throat as she saw the subject line appear on her phone: “Congratulations.” Opening the email in both disbelief and excitement, these words caught her eye: “Accepted.” “National selection.” “New York, October 2024.” For a moment, she could only stare at the email before it hit her: her film, which she’d quietly submitted months ago at her mother’s encouragement, had just been chosen for the All American High School Film Festival, with a screening set in New York.
“I was like, ‘Holy crap, I have to go,’” Akhare said. “They played it in the AMC at Times Square. I saw my own film on a movie theater screen. I saw my name in the credits, and it was such an out-of-body experience. It solidified the idea that maybe I can be commercially successful.”
Akhare says she has always been interested in film, but her passion took off during quarantine when she became fascinated by the emotions movies brought her. Akhare’ says her love for film is also inspired by her late grandfather, Raman B. Desai, who was also a filmmaker.
“When he first started making films, it was still a growing industry and no one knew if it would become popular or not,” Akhare said. “But he took the chance and made films because that’s what he wanted to do, and he became successful His story was inspiring because he did all that, knowing that he might have poured his whole life into something that never gave him anything in return, but he took that risk. I can do that with my life too.”
MVHS ‘24 alum and actress in Akhare’s film, Sruthi Venkatesan, said that while working with her, Akhare always had a clear vision for the film. Though Venkatesan had previous experience performing in choir, she says that Akhare’s director’s notes on how to accurately portray intricate emotions helped her adjust to the performance type. Furthermore, Venkatesan says the strong, supportive leadership Akhare demonstrated fostered an enjoyable work environment.
“It was a cool experience to see her in this leadership position and telling me what to do,” Venkatesan said. “She was so confident and comfortable with what she was doing, even though she hadn’t made many films. I went in with no expectations, but I was blown away by her performance as a director.”
As Akhare’s close friend, Venkatesan also observed how she says Akhare’s personality carried over to her filmmaking. She believes that Akhare’s vivid creativity shapes unique visions for her films, while her unwavering loyalty in her personal relationships translates into a steadfast belief in her actors.
“She’s super, super creative, so film is such a good career that she’s chosen for herself,” Venkatesan said. “She has such cool ideas, stories and visions with color and orientation.”
In addition to directing films, Akhare says she enjoys producing shows because she likes figuring out logistical details. Looking back, Akhare recalls her time as a producer for the MVHS Drama department’s Saturday Night Live show, where she worked alongside co-producers junior Rowan Chang and senior Aayushi Ayalasomayajula. She particularly enjoyed teaching newcomers acting skills — something she believes is useful in other aspects of life as well.
Freshman Avishi Bansal, one of the actors that Akhare directed in SNL, says she felt more capable of performing in front of large audiences — something she initially would’ve shied away from — as a result of the guidance she received from Akhare. Bansal also says she enjoyed performing in SNL due to the camaraderie created by Akhare.
“When I was working with Trisha, I felt like a new person around her because she would give me a heads up on everything I did,” Bansal said. “Even before I got on stage, she was giving me tips on how I could make it better. Other people would just tell you to do it better, but Trisha would demonstrate it for you and tell you to add more, pushing us to where we needed to be.”
Though SNL marked an emotional ending for Akhare’s time in the MVHS Drama department, she says that her film career is far from over. Akhare plans to study Cinematic Arts in Southern California, intending to graduate early to begin working in the Los Angeles film industry.
“My ultimate goal is to write, direct and produce my own films,” Akhare said. “It’s not a linear path, which makes it difficult. I’m going to go job hunting for a while and take whatever I can get. I just want to be on a set and try to build a lot of connections and use those to find opportunities.”