Tasveer was co-founded circa March 2002 in the basement of The Elliott Bay Book Company in Seattle by Rita Meher and Farah Nousheen. Many community members were present at that first gathering, including Uzma Khan.
The organization was born in the aftermath of 9/11, a time when South Asians across the United States were facing rising fear, racism, hate crimes, and deeply harmful stereotypes in mainstream media. Troubled by the prejudicial images and limited representation of South Asians, the founders and community members came together with a simple but powerful purpose: to dispel stereotypes and harmful narratives through films and storytelling. Tasveer, meaning “picture” in Hindi and Urdu, was created to offer a more nuanced, human, and authentic glimpse into South Asian lives through film, art, and storytelling.
Tasveer’s first screening took place at The Elliott Bay Book Company during Pride Month, marking the beginning of what would become a renowned arts and culture organization in the Greater Seattle Area, North America, and beyond. From the beginning, Tasveer has worked to amplify stories from a community that remains underrepresented, despite being one of the fastest-growing populations in the region and across the country.
In 2004, under the leadership of Farah Nousheen and Uzma Khan, Tasveer’s first film festival was established and called the Independent South Asian Film Festival.
Today, Tasveer is home to the world’s only Oscar®-qualifying South Asian film festival.
After a brief two-year pause in 2010 and 2012, Rita Meher restarted Tasveer in 2013 and led the organization into a new era of growth. Rita had been directing the film festival since 2005 and dedicated herself to transforming Tasveer from a grassroots collective into a thriving nonprofit institution.
Rita Meher made the bold decision to leave her flourishing corporate career and commit full-time to Tasveer, channeling her vision, labor, and passion into building an organization with lasting cultural impact. Her leadership expanded Tasveer beyond screenings into a year-round platform for artists, filmmakers, and communities. These programs helped position Tasveer as a vital pipeline for South Asian cinema and storytelling.
Under her leadership:
- 2013 — Tasveer achieved 501(c)(3) status and became a cornerstone for South Asian storytelling in the United States.
- 2014 — Tasveer opened its first office with one employee.
- 2020 — Tasveer established the Tasveer Film Fund.
- 2023 — Tasveer Film Festival became an Oscar®-qualifying film festival.
- 2024 — Tasveer founded the Tasveer Film Market.
On March 26, 2025, at 3 PM, Tasveer’s newest chapter began, marking its boldest transformation yet: purchasing a beautiful 105-year-old brick-and-mortar 3-screen cinema called Ark Lodge Cinemas, now named Tasveer Film Center, making it a cultural home in the heart of Columbia City, a historic Seattle neighborhood.
With the launch of the Tasveer Film Center, Tasveer has evolved from a moving film festival and community arts organization to having a permanent home for South Asian cinema, storytelling, and gathering, including a distribution platform dedicated to South Asian stories / World Cinema. Tasveer 3.0 represents more than a theater.
When an organization of color owns a theater, it's not just a property—it’s power, PRESENCE, and a revolution in storytelling.
From a small community screening in 2002 to the world’s only Oscar®-qualifying South Asian film festival, and now to a permanent film center, Tasveer continues to fulfill its founding mission: to change the narrative, one story at a time.
Our Mission
To inspire social change through thought-provoking films, art, and storytelling
Our Vision
We envision an informed and just society where storytelling leads to truth-telling and in the process, individuals are entertained, transformed, healed and empowered.
Our Values
We work to produce programs featuring films, art, and stories that demonstrate excellence both in creativity and quality.
We aspire to create safe, respectful, and loving spaces for constructive dialogue around issues of race, gender, class, caste, religion, and sexuality. We welcome all viewpoints, in the spirit of challenging existing power structures. We strongly believe this type of dialogue fosters shared understanding.
We strive to educate and inform the community through thought-provoking films, stories, and art.
At Tasveer, we pride ourselves on inclusivity. “South Asia” covers Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, Tibet, Sri Lanka, and their diasporas worldwide, and we endeavor to represent everyone equally