Sharat Raju is an American director and writer, known for making documentaries and films about the lives of immigrants in American society. Raju has also directed episodes of major American television series, including '' How to Get Away with Murder'', '' Law & Order: Special Victims Unit'', ''Once Upon a Time'', and others.

Early life and education

Raju was born in Chicago and raised in Darien, Illinois. Raju's brother, Manu Raju, is a journalist who works as the Senior Congressional Correspondent for CNN. Raju's grandfather, Gopalakrishna Adiga, was a prominent Kannada poet. Raju attended Hinsdale South High School before earning a Bachelor of Arts degree in English from the University of Michigan, where he was the sports editor of '' The Michigan Daily'' and worked as a freelance reporter for the ''Daily Herald''. Raju then earned a

Master of Fine Arts A Master of Fine Arts (MFA or M.F.A.) is a terminal degree in fine arts, including visual arts, creative writing, graphic design, photography, filmmaking, dance, theatre, other performing arts and in some cases, theatre management or arts admini ...

in Directing from the

American Film Institute The American Film Institute (AFI) is an American nonprofit film organization that educates filmmakers and honors the heritage of the motion picture arts in the United States. AFI is supported by private funding and public membership fees. Leade ...

Career

Raju co-founded the Yale Visual Law Project and co-produced three documentary short films as a visiting fellow at the Information Society Project. Raju’s first film, ''American Made'', which starred Kal Penn and Sakina Jaffrey, won 17 film festival awards and aired nationally on '' Independent Lens''. ''American Made'' was Raju's master's thesis film produced while studying at the

. In September 2004, Raju was named by ''Esquire'' as one of the 20 young film directors to watch. Prior to graduate school, he worked for casting director Mali Finn on feature films including ''8 Mile'', '' The Matrix Revolutions'', and '' The Matrix Reloaded''. Raju has collaborated on many of his works with his wife,

Valarie Kaur Valarie Kaur (born February 14, 1981) is an American activist, documentary filmmaker, lawyer, educator, and faith leader. She is the founder of the Revolutionary Love Project. Kaur's debut book, ''See No Stranger: A Memoir and Manifesto of Revol ...

. ''Divided We Fall'' (2008) was Raju's first film created in partnership with his wife. The couple has made other documentary films including ''Stigma'' (2011), which highlights the impact of New York City police’s “

Stop and Frisk A ''Terry'' stop in the United States allows the police to briefly detain a person based on reasonable suspicion of involvement in criminal activity. ("In ''Terry v. Ohio'', 392 U. S. 1, 30 (1968), we held that the police can stop and briefly de ...

” policy; ''Alienation'' (2011), about immigration raids; ''The Worst of the Worst: Portrait of a Supermax'' (2012), a documentary on the use of solitary confinement in prison; and ''Oak Creek: In Memorium'' (2012), a short film about the 2012 mass shooting at a Sikh gurdwara in Wisconsin. He has also directed episodes of '' Scandal, How to Get Away With Murder'', '' NCIS: New Orleans'', '' Criminal Minds,'' and '' Mistresses''. Raju has written columns for '' HuffPost'' and ''Filmmaker Magazine''.

Personal life

Raju lives with his wife

in Los Angeles.

Filmography

Television

References