索曼·查纳尼，Soman Chainani is a graduate of the MFA Film Program at Columbia University, and the recipient of the school's top prize, the FMI Fellowship for writing and directing. He also received the CINE Golden Eagle Prize for excellence in directing (joining the ranks of former recipients including Ron Howard, Steven Spielberg, and Robert Altman). His short films have played over 150 international film festivals, won over 20 jury and audience awards, and secured theatrical and ancillary distribution in over 100 territories. Before joining the Columbia University film program, Soman graduated Harvard University in 2001, summa cum laude and top-ranked in his field, with a degree in English & American Literature. He worked alongside Mira Nair at Mirabai Films and was the co-founder of the South Asian International Film Festival, the largest event of its kind in the country, now entering its fourth year in New York City. Soman is based in New York.