Bindu Shah | Producer/Director/Writer
Bindu Shah was born in Kenya and has lived in the UK, India and now Canada. Having worked as an Indian dancer and choreographer, high school teacher, and a successful business owner for 25 years, she has honed her skills in the arts, education and business fields.

In 2010, she completed a certificate program at Humber College in Television Writing and Producing, which led to her working on Omni Television’s South Asian programming. In 2014, she completed her MFA in Documentary Media where she produced, shot, directed and edited her short documentary Every Story Has a Twist, which has screened at the Bloor Hot Docs Cinema, Roxy Theatre in Owen Sound and the Collective Space in Toronto.  She has since worked as a Digital Media Producer and presently creates independent videos for clients who want to tell their story in a visual format.

Her passion lies in telling real stories about real people, especially lesser known ethnographic groups. Her studies and experience have prepared her to confidently venture into making her first feature documentary.

Shah has remained an active member of the Oshwal community in Canada since 1994, and still maintains ties with Oshwal communities in Kenya and UK. She has dedicated herself to her first feature documentary film, Threads That Tie Us, since 2015.

Dhruv Shah
Editor

Dhruv completed his filmmaking course in 2014, with editing as his specialisation from Whistling Woods International Film School. He is involved with Threads That Tie Us as an editor and is thrilled to be part of such an insightful and inspiring story.

Matt Gallagher
Director of Photography
Matt is an award-winning filmmaker with over 15 years’ experience in documentary production, having directed and shot feature documentaries, numerous shorts for the NFB, and several one-off docs for CBC and TVO. He has directed big-budget documentaries and documentary series for History Television, CBC, BBC, W Network, and the Food Network. His documentaries have screened at Hot Docs, Cinematheque Ontario, Yorkton, Atlantic Film Festival and at Input. He has been nominated for three Geminis for his documentaries, a Chalmers Award and won the Best of the Festival at the Yorkton Film Festival. Matt’s reel can be seen here.
Harshad
Camera & Fixer
(for India Trip 1)
Harshad completed his Masters in Film from NYU Tisch Asia in the summer of 2012. Over the years, he has developed engaging content on a wide range of subjects and produced fresh program concepts for clients in South East Asia, Africa and India, ranging from multi-national bodies to government agencies.
As they say, the eye is the window to the soul; for Harshad, the eye is the important visual tool that helps him craft amazing stories to astound the audience. He is fluent in many components of film, framing and lighting helping to realize scenes that marks the creative and interpretive process of the work of art that the client or director desires.

Ben Daniels
Production Assistant/Assistant Editor

Ben is in his final year of the BFA Screenwriting program at York University. At his heart, he is a storyteller first and foremost and he believes that film is the best medium for storytelling. Ben is well-versed in all aspects of filmmaking, with experience in directing, writing, editing, camerawork, even acting! Ben is thrilled to be working as a production assistant and assistant editor on Threads That Tie Us and looks forward to helping bring this film to life.

Bunshri Chandaria
Photographer & Assistant Director
(for India Trip 1)
Bunshri Chandaria emigrated from Kenya to London in 1968. She is an award winning Film Maker/Photographer and an associate of the Royal Photographic Society. In 2015 Bunshri earned a first class BA (Hons) photography degree. She strongly believes that it is a joy to be an artist but this also comes with an obligation to be of use and contribute to others. She volunteers her time to many charitable projects where she gives the gift of her knowledge to the cause.
Juan Baquero
| Story Consultant & Mentor

Juan is a Toronto-based director, story consultant and producer. His work has been shown in film festivals all over the world and broadcast by major channels including Discovery Channel and TVO. His documentary film career spans fifteen years and three continents, beginning in his native Colombia, where he created and produced original programming for television and worked as a journalist, interviewing figures such as Fidel Castro.

Upon his arrival in Canada, Juan quickly joined the ranks of Canadian documentary filmmakers. His debut Canadian documentary, Listen to This, a feature length film which he directed, shot and edited, premiered at Hot Docs and was nominated for a Gemini Award for Best Arts Documentary. In addition to his work as a filmmaker, Juan is on the board of directors of POV Magazine and is the co-founder of The Story Studio, a centre for the advancement and diffusion of narrative non-fiction film. Juan holds an undergraduate degree in telecommunications from the University of Florida and a Master of Laws degree from Harvard Law School. He also studied film production in Sydney, Australia. You can see his work at  http://juanbaquero.com/

Anand Pavamani
| Score Composer

Anand Pavamani is a Music Composer and Director based in Markham. Having learned to play the piano at age 5 and oil paint at age 8, art has always been a staple and passion in his life. Anand has trained in classical music, jazz and pop, and has been a piano teacher for the Royal Conservatory of Music.  Anand graduated from York University with a degree in Computer Science and has held various senior consulting positions in the field of Marketing and Technology.
In 2018, Anand started Paixtriot Inc, a Media Company aimed at creating music and film for social justice.  His latest and third short film, Uncolonize, recently had its premiere at the Oakville Film Festival. Currently, he is working on an experimental short film, feature and unscripted series.