Meet the Mentor : Ketaki Desai!

Meet the Mentor is a series of profiles on our stunning mentors at the Media-Makers Fellowship - journalists, creators and media professionals who help train student creators through the fellowship.

A befitting piece of journalism must be a portrait of all humanity. It behooves the journalist to craft a most unfragmented portrait. Our mentor, Ketaki Desai, is a devout advocate of that very purpose. A features writer at the revered Times of India, Desai emphasizes the necessity of amplifying and highlighting the voices that the mainstream media tends to ignore. Desai’s background, however, lay in academia before she ventured into journalism. She fondly recalls that as a child, she was fascinated by newspapers. Politics intrigued her, and the value of journalism not merely captivated her but also awakened great respect. 

Desai was drawn to features, in particular, for the depth of social and cultural changes and trends that it allowed her to examine.

“I think my skill set is more about being able to dig into complex issues and present them in ways that are easily understandable”, she informs.

Features is a confluence of her theoretical knowledge from academia and her interest in the current affairs rather than solely the latter. The hardest part, however, is to find stories. Social media, she observes, is a great tool, apart from reading additional journalistic works and conversing with different people. In essence, she encourages “just keeping your eyes and ears open”. Yet, it is “the joy of talking to other people’ that inspires her to stride forward. As a writer of bold subjects, especially gender and technology, Desai strives to study a topical affair from an angle that people generally overlook. However, in a country with an arguably restricted press, she advises one to be brave and never to self-censor.

Desai’s profession often leaves a mark on her personal experiences. She recollects a story she explored on caste-based crimes against Dalit women and being marveled by “the perseverance” and “the strength” of the survivors and the activists. However, she suggests a young journalist to necessarily educate themselves on the identity when interviewing a person from a vastly different background. “To be curious and to admit the things you don't know” is her pearl of wisdom.

Dwelling upon the decline of the traditional forms of journalism, Desai asserts that the “fundamental value” of journalism can never falter, especially in a democracy. To chase passions yet never to dismiss the dip in money, is her message to fledgling journalists.

Written by Krittika Majumder

Krittika wrote this article as co-Editor of the program zine, The DIY Digest.

This zine was established to showcase the work of students and interns at the Media-Makers Fellowship's April '24 cohort.