Surekha Deepak

Assistant Professor

Surekha Deepak brings over two decades of experience in media education alongside a rich background in film and television production. She began her career in the industry, working with ETV and Ramoji Film City, where she helped launch several regional-language satellite channels, contributed to Hollywood productions shot there, and served as special effects coordinator at Mantra, the studio's effects division. She also worked with NGOs like the Deccan Development Society and the Centre for Development Communications, producing training material for grassroots organisations, and freelanced as a documentary filmmaker and scriptwriter, with one film screened at the Bombay Documentary Film Festival. Her teaching career began at the Sri Sri Centre for Media Studies, designing the television production curriculum. She then spent over 18 years at the Indian Institute of Journalism and New Media (IIJNM), rising from Assistant Professor to Professor, Head of the Broadcast Department, and Assistant Dean. There, she taught Reporting and Writing for Broadcast, Documentary Production, Studio Production, and Podcast and Radio, guiding students through producing a twice-weekly live news bulletin from pitch to air. She also led the Critical Thinking and Capstone Project course, mentoring students on rural and development-focused long-form stories, while overseeing curriculum design, student welfare, and academic integrity, and helping establish IIJNM as a hub for media literacy and trauma education. She later served as Professor and Head of Department at Acharya Institute of Graduate Studies. Surekha remains active in journalism ethics and media literacy, is a Dart Center for Journalism and Trauma alumna, and contributes to NIMHANS's media and mental health program. She holds a Master's in Mass Communication (Central University of Hyderabad) and a Bachelor's in English Literature (Madras University).

Qualification: M.A