One-time advertising writer, Vani Subramanian has been a women's rights activist and documentary filmmaker since the nineties. Her work as a filmmaker explores the connections between our everyday practices, perceptions and prejudices, and the larger political questions confronting us – be they in the areas of culture, food practices and production, education, sectarian intolerance, sex selective abortions, or even questions relating to justice, and the death penalty. Her films have been screened and received awards, both nationally and internationally. Over the years, she has extended her practice to video art in performance, mixed media installation and pop-up shows.

Vani's work on issues related to women's rights and social inequities has been grounded in the feminist collective called Saheli in Delhi - a group that has been working on women's rights - in both the private and public domain for over 4 decades. Presently, she is Creative Director, reFrame Institute of Art and Expression, New Delhi.