Kovid Gupta (born 1988) is an Indian-American author, screenwriter, filmmaker, and social activist. He gained recognition for his non-fiction works, including '' Kingdom of The Soap Queen: The Story of Balaji Telefilms'' and '' Redrawing India: The Teach For India Story.''

Early life

Gupta was born and raised in

Houston Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...

. His early exposure to

Bollywood Hindi cinema, popularly known as Bollywood and formerly as Bombay cinema, is primarily produced in Mumbai. The popular term Bollywood is a portmanteau of "Bombay" (former name of Mumbai) and "Cinema of the United States, Hollywood". The in ...

films played a formative role in shaping his creative interests. He pursued his higher education at the

University of Texas at Austin The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public university, public research university in Austin, Texas, United States. Founded in 1883, it is the flagship institution of the University of Texas System. With 53,082 stud ...

, earning three bachelor's degrees from the McCombs School of Business,

Moody College of Communication The Moody College of Communication is the communication college at The University of Texas at Austin. The Moody College of Communication operates out of the Jesse H. Jones Communication Complex and the Dealey Center for New Media, which opened i ...

, and College of Liberal Arts. Subsequently, he obtained an MBA from

Cornell University Cornell University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university based in Ithaca, New York, United States. The university was co-founded by American philanthropist Ezra Cornell and historian and educator Andrew Dickson W ...

Career

Gupta began his career by screenwriting mainstream Hindi television soap operas, receiving his first break with '' Balika Vadhu''. This was followed by a collaboration with

Ekta Kapoor Ekta Kapoor (born 7 June 1975) is an Indian television and film producer, known for her work in Hindi television and Bollywood cinema. She is the founder of Balaji Telefilms, Balaji Telefilms Limited, where she serves as joint managing directo ...

and

Balaji Telefilms Balaji Telefilms is an Indian company that produces Indian soap operas in several Indian languages. Balaji Telefilms also owns Alt Balaji, the platform known for producing adult rated content. Balaji Telefilms also produces reality TV, comedy ...

, where authored '' Kingdom of The Soap Queen: The Story of Balaji Telefilms''. Later, he joined Rajshri Productions, assisting

Sooraj Barjatya Sooraj R. Barjatya (born 22 February 1964) is an Indian filmmaker who works in Hindi cinema. He has directed and produced some of the List of highest-grossing Hindi films, most commercially successful Hindi films. His films often include themes ...

on the production of '' Prem Ratan Dhan Payo''. Subsequently, he worked as Head of Business Development at Vinod Chopra Films and Film Companion. ''

Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine founded by B. C. Forbes in 1917. It has been owned by the Hong Kong–based investment group Integrated Whale Media Investments since 2014. Its chairman and editor-in-chief is Steve Forbes. The co ...

'' recognized Gupta's achievements by including him on the 2017 ''Forbes'' 30 Under 30 Media, Marketing, & Advertising list.

Filmography

Producer * ''Tanhaa'' (In Development) * ''An Unquiet Mind'' (2025)

Screenwriter

* '' Balika Vadhu'' (2010) * '' Bade Acche Lagte Hain'' (2011) * ''Hamaar Sautan Hamaar Saheli'' (2011) * '' Chhan Chhan'' (2013) * '' Bahu Hamari Rajni Kant'' (2016) * '' Krishnadasi (2016 TV series)'' (2016) * '' Devanshi (TV series)'' (2016)

Assistant Director

* '' Prem Ratan Dhan Payo'' (2015)

Literary Career

Books

* *

Stories

* Gupta, Kovid (Spring-2021)
"Boy of the Betel Leaf"
. '' Blackbird.'' Vol. 20, no. 01. * Gupta, Kovid (December-22-2018)
"Reincarnation"
. ''The Broadkill Review.'' Vol. 18, no. 01.

Journal Publications

* Gupta, Kovid (March-01-2019)
"CSR In India: The Companies Act and its Implications"
. ''Journal of Contemporary Management Research.'' Vol. 13, no. 01. *Gupta, Kovid (July-06-2018
"Filmmaking and the India-Pakistan partition: the representation of women in contemporary commercial Hindi cinema"
. ''International Journal of Indian Culture and Business Management.'' Vol. 17, no. 01. * Gupta, Kovid (May-22-2013
"The Indian Television Melodrama: A Vehicle for Social Innovation"
. ''International Journal of Intercultural Information Management.'' Vol. 03, no. 02. * Gupta, Kovid (Feb-01-2011
"Brand Development in Indian Cinema: A Fusion of Traditionalism and Modernity"
. ''International Journal of Global Management.'' Vol. 01, no. 02.

Awards and Honors

* Outstanding Young Texas Exes Award (2023) * McCombs School of Business Rising Star Award (2019) * ''Forbes'' 30 Under 30 (2017) * Glorious India Award (2017)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Gupta, Kovid 21st-century American novelists 1988 births Living people American novelists of Indian descent American male novelists Moody College of Communication alumni Novelists from Texas Writers from Houston Rajasthani people 21st-century American male writers Cornell University alumni University of Texas at Austin alumni McCombs School of Business alumni Klein High School alumni 21st-century American screenwriters American male screenwriters