Meet Rika Dharmesh Bhakta: Development Assistant

We had the good fortune of connecting with Rika Dharmesh Bhakta and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Rika Dharmesh, can you tell us more about your background and the role it’s played in shaping who you are today?
I am a first-generation Indian-American woman who was born and raised in North Carolina. My South Asian identity is the part of me that I cherish the most. It’s something that I’ve had a very complex relationship with, and it took me a beat to figure out why it’s such an important part of me.
When I was eight years old, I was at the park with my parents, and I headed for the tire swing. A little boy, who couldn’t have been much older than me, said, “This swing isn’t for colored people.” That is my first memory of discrimination. It wasn’t until high school that my otherness was thrown back at me. I was a lottery kid, picked at random to attend a school in a different, wealthier part of town. Someone told me, “You know, you’re like an honorary white girl.” They said that I didn’t really count as a minority because I wasn’t like other Indians. It gave me pause, because, what does that even mean? Why did I have to fit into their box? They failed to see the complexity, the color, and the depth in me.

For most people, the only knowledge they had of South Asians was from film and television. I started to understand why white people didn’t see me as Indian. Even I didn’t relate to most representations of Indians in the media. There was a way that the media portrayed white people, and there was a way that it portrayed Indian people. The white people were “normal.” They talked like me, they dressed like me, they grew up like me, had the same teenage girl problems. The Indians were “other.” Immigrants with heavy accents, forced arranged marriages, used in the punchline of a joke. I didn’t have a traditional Indian upbringing, but I didn’t have a typical American one either. It was somewhere in the middle. And I want people to know that being in the middle is its own identity and that is okay.

It took me a while to fit in and find a good group of friends who weren’t pre-occupied with deconstructing my identity. But, I’m grateful. They came to dance festivals with me and learned garba. They watched Bollywood movies and listened to Hindi music. They came over to learn how to make and then eat samosas. They loved sharing my culture. To them, I wasn’t different or “exotic.” They loved me for who I was.

All that said, my South Asian identity has molded my personality and added a beautiful complexity to who I am. It has made me more appreciative and more resilient. It has made me recognize my privilege. It has shaped my career and has inspired me to not only be an ally for South Asians but all those who have been made to feel ‘other,’ people of different backgrounds and cultures, especially women of color. My Indian culture is a part of who I am and something that I will continue to celebrate and share.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
I’m currently working as a development assistant, or as I like to call it ‘Executive-In-Training,’ at a production company based in Los Angeles. It’s been challenging to get to this place, for all of the reasons that I’ve explored in previous answers. I am a woman of color navigating a largely white male industry. But my culture and my identity are the reason that I am pursuing this career. My mom told me that she knew I was going to tell stories since I was five years old. My drive and passion are motivated by her and her ability to see me and support me as I get closer to telling those stories.

For a long time, I wanted to be a writer. I thought that was the best path to tell stories. Working in development has made me realize what I loved about screenwriting wasn’t the act of writing, it was finding the right way to tell a story through a collaborative process. I loved talking about story and reading books and scripts and talking about their potential as television series. I loved the idea of seeing something through from conception through development and production. I wanted to tell stories; I just didn’t necessarily have to write them.

My goal as an executive, and as a producer, is to shine a light on underrepresented voices, both in front of the camera and behind the scenes–specifically in cross-genre content. I will strive to have more South Asian creators behind South Asian-led thrillers, horrors, action-adventures, and superhero stories, in addition to the traditional comedies and dramas. I’d love to see shows like Big Little Lies, The Flight Attendant, or Ratched with South Asian leads. I want to collaborate with innovative, underrepresented artists to create these stories that resonate with like-minded, underrepresented audiences. As I climb the ranks, I am determined to use my influence to reach out to South Asian and other underrepresented creators with the ability to give them a space to speak their truth, tell their stories, and hopefully, get their stories made.

There have been achievements made recently in the media to include diverse voices, but I want more. I intend to dedicate my career to building this “more.”

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
This is such a hard question, there are so many things to explore in Los Angeles! I’ve lived here less than three years and I’ve actually spent the last year in quarantine back in my hometown in North Carolina. The number one place on this list is Griffith Park (including the Griffith Observatory). I’m a big hiker, I love all the nature trails, and I’m obsessed with space things. It was the first place I visited when my dad dropped me off in Los Angeles three years ago, and every time I go up there and look out over the city, I’m reminded of what it took to get me here. As much as I love the mountains, I also love being by the water. So, next stops would be either Santa Monica or Malibu, or both! I’d also love to explore the Getty, The Broad, LACMA! Maybe a movie at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery. An orchestra concert at the Hollywood Bowl. As a gluten-free, nut-free, almost vegan, my go-to restaurants are BeaBea’s in Burbank and Green Leaf in Los Feliz.

To be honest, visitors give me a reason to explore and be a tourist again, so I’m sure they’d have a few suggestions of their own to introduce me to! Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
Getting to this point hasn’t been easy. Since I decided to go into entertainment, I’ve faced opposition from the Indian community. “How are you ever going to get a job?” “All this money spent on a master’s education, for what?” “You should have studied for a real career.” Some of my elders, despite encouraging my independence, still believe that a woman should be a homemaker and are worried about my future. “How are you going to have time to cook for your husband?” “How are you going to take care of the children?” “What will your mother-in-law think?”

The two people I have been able to rely on most throughout this endeavor are my parents. My parents are the ones that fight the ‘what will people think?’ mentality on my behalf. They’re the ones that funded my education and encouraged my passions. They’re the ones that taught me that you can still be a traditional Indian woman without bowing down to the patriarchy. They struggled, they endured, and they overcame so many obstacles so that I could be exactly where I am today. They were always there to make sure I succeeded, they gave me everything they could, in hopes that they could eliminate certain obstacles for me. Their sacrifices make me want to work harder and do everything I can to succeed and make them proud.

Instagram: @rikadharmeshbhakta

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rika-dharmesh-bhakta-248061ba/

Twitter: @rdbhakta93

Image Credits
Charlie Malcolm