Ms. Sonam Deki is from Thimphu, Bhutan. She holds a B.A. in English with honors from Sherubtse College, a post-graduate certificate in Education from the National Institute of Education, Samtse, and a Masters's in Social Science with honors from the University of Newcastle, Australia. Before joining RTC, she taught literature and language for undergraduate programmes for Delhi University and the Royal University of Bhutan (RUB), as well as the post-graduate diploma in English for B.Ed teachers at Sherubtse College. She has management and administrative experience as the head of the English department at Sherubtse. In addition, she has worked on the development of the revised English curriculum for schools and has also taught English at higher secondary schools in Bhutan.
Dr. Pallavi Majumdar, an Indian national, holds a Ph.D. in Media Studies from the Centre for Culture, Media and Governance, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi. She was Head of Amity School of Communication (Noida), one of the largest communication schools in India. There she spearheaded curriculum development, industry-academia interface, and internationalization. Prior to joining academics, she worked as a journalist in India for over 8 years with leading brands such as The Times of India and Business Standard in New Delhi. She has also been a contributory journalist for BBC News Service. Dr. Majumdar has driven several research, innovation, and training initiatives including co-chairing an international conference on emerging media paradigms, editing a peer-reviewed journal, and directing a media affairs training programme for the government of Guyana (South America). She is also the recipient of a Netherland government fellowship. Her research interests pertain to Media Regulation and Governance, New Media, Media Literacy, and Media Education. Her personal interests include reading, traveling, trekking and music.
MS. VANLALLAWMKIMI
Programme Leader of BA English Studies / Associate Professor
Ms. Vanlallawmkimi is from Mizoram, India. She has an undergraduate degree in English from Loreto College, Darjeeling, and a post-graduate degree in English with a special paper in post-colonial literature from Darjeeling Government College under North Bengal University. She also has a diploma in Communicative English from North Bengal University. Before joining RTC, she worked as a part-time lecturer at Darjeeling Government College and at St. Joseph’s College, Darjeeling.
Mr. Sonam Tobgay is from Mongar, Bhutan. He completed his Master’s Degree in Buddhist philosophy from Druk Gangtey Buddhist College. In addition, he studied at the Tibetan University in Utter Pradesh, India, for two years. He taught at Druk Gangtey Buddhist College and was also the principal of Chaskhar Shedra at Mongar. Before joining RTC, he was a freelance Dzongkha writer and has a couple of publications to his credit. In 2008 he was awarded the most prestigious certificate by the Royal Government of Bhutan for promoting Dzongkha. In 2010, he authored a book entitled Samchod Sheyeon, and for this book, he won the best Dzongkha writer award from the Dzongkha Development Commission. He also served a short stint as editor for the Dzongkha news for Business Bhutan, the only business newspaper in the country.
Mr. Tshoki Dorji has a Master's Degree in Buddhist Studies and has a working experience of nine years as a Lecturer at Tango Buddhist University in Thimphu.
Mr. Kinley Tshering holds a Masters's Degree in Buddhist Studies from Tango Buddhist University, Bhutan. Mr. Tshering has worked 9 years in Rinchen Higher Secondary School, followed by 11 years and running at RTC. Mr. Tshering is interested in composing and singing songs and playing various sports.
Mr. Mohan Rai is from Sarpang, Bhutan. He completed his Master’s Degree in Education in 2010 under the Aus-Aid scholarship award from Monash University in Australia with a specialization in ‘Leadership, Policy and Change’. He has a degree in BA in English Honours from Sherubtse College and a postgraduate in Education from Loyola College of Education in Sikkim. Prior to joining RTC, he served as a Vice-Principal at Kelki Higher Secondary School and also taught English literature and language for 19 years. He has an extensive level of exposure to multidisciplinary educational and leadership programmes through various training programmes and workshops such as developing the strategic blueprint of the Beacon School project in Singapore, one of the premier projects of the Royal Education Council, English for Effective Communication, Transformative Pedagogy, and many more. He has also facilitated some of the relevant training programmes for the Bhutan Institute for Training and Development (BITAD) as a resource person.
Ms. Paromita Manna has her origin in Kolkata, West Bengal, India. She holds an Honours Degree in English Literature and acquired her Master’s degree as well in the same from the University of Calcutta. She also bears a Bachelor's degree in Education (B.Ed) from the aforesaid university. She carries experience teaching at the undergraduate level in the Department of English for nine years. She even contributed to the NAAC Accreditation process in the previous academic institution as a member of the NAAC Steering Committee. Besides her passion for teaching, she is fond of reading books of different genres, takes much interest in composing poetry, and simultaneously is enthusiastic about traveling and portraying the beauty of Nature through her photography.
Ms. Ruma Tamang is from Tsirang, Bhutan. She has a Bachelor of Arts degree from Fergusson College, Pune. In addition, she studied at the University of Pune (currently known as Savitribai Phule Pune University), where she completed her Master of Arts degree in English. She has previously taught at Kelki Higher Secondary School and worked under the Thai English Development Programme at Rinchen Higher Secondary School. She has previously worked at RTC and rejoined in the fall semester of 2019. She enjoys reading and visiting new places.
Nithil Dennis holds a Degree in Visual Communication, specializing in Photography from Loyola College, Chennai, and a Post Graduate Degree in Electronic Media, specializing in Film and television production. He also has a Diploma in Printing Technology. He is a UGC-NET qualified academician with 10 years of teaching experience in various leading educational Institutes, holding important positions and responsibilities. He has worked with leading photographers and filmmakers, which include International Award-winning Environment and wildlife filmmaker and photographer, Mike Pandey. He has directed and filmed two documentaries, which have been screened in International Film festivals. He has produced documentaries for NDTV, a leading news channel in India. Moreover, he has worked in Argentina as a Photo and Video journalist for an English news website based in Buenos Aires. He loves to travel and has a strong sense of identifying photo stories. His research interest is ‘Storytelling through visuals and Representation of ethnographic Communities’. He has a special interest in Visual Anthropology and social documentary. He is currently pursuing his research in the field of Visual Communication.
Dr. Sunil Kumar is from Himachal Pradesh, India. He completed his undergraduate and postgraduate studies from the University of Delhi and his M.Phil. and Ph.D. from Jamia Millia Islamia University, Delhi. His areas of interest include literary criticism and theory, visual culture, and aesthetics. He also translates fiction from Hindi to English and has translated and published several short stories by Munshi Premchand. He has taught at the University of Delhi for more than ten years and has also served as an Assistant Language Teacher in the Japanese Government School system for a year before joining Royal Thimphu College.
Mr. Damber K. Ghimiray prior to joining Royal Thimphu College worked for Bhutan Broadcasting Service Corporation for 15 years and then became a private media consultant and trainer. Mr. Ghimiray holds a Master's Degree in Communication Arts from Bangkok University in Thailand. Having completed his primary education in Tsirang, Bhutan, he moved to Khaling in Tashigang and then to St. Joseph’s College in Darjeeling, India to complete his Bachelor's Degree in Biology Science. Mr. Ghimiray is widely exposed to international training, seminars, and workshops. He has lived in Singapore, Australia, Netherlands, Nepal, China, India, Thailand, and the Philippines for the same. He loves driving, cooking, and writing media articles in his free time. He frequently contributes his theoretical analysis to Kuensel and other newspapers in Bhutan.
Mr. Utsav Khatiwara Sharma is from Tsirang, Bhutan. He has worked in the media, publishing, technology, and CSO sectors prior to joining RTC. He holds a BE in Electronics and Communications from Bangalore, India. His key interest areas are creative writing, poetry, science fiction, and technology.
Ms. Sonam Peldon is from Thimphu, Bhutan. She holds a Master’s degree in Education specializing in curriculum and instruction from Assumption University in Thailand and a Bachelor’s degree (General) from Indraprastha College for Women, Delhi University, majoring in History and Political Science. She has 9 years of teaching experience in Bhutan as well as in Thailand to the students of Grade 4 – 12, prior to joining RTC. Her personal interests include traveling and watching movies.
Dr. Rupali Sehgal holds a PhD and MPhil in Media Studies from Jawaharlal Nehru University, India. She also holds a Master’s degree in Sociology from the same institution, and a Bachelor’s degree in Humanities from St. Stephen’s College, Delhi University, India. Her research interest is guided by a passion for understanding the intricate workings of society and culture through the lens of sociology, culture, media studies, and food systems. In her PhD, she explores media approaches to the construction of taste via aesthetic experiences in depiction of Indian food. She has published and presented her papers in food and media studies at international conferences.
Ms. Tenzin Wangmo has completed her BA in English (Honors) from Sherubtse College, Kanglung, and also holds a Master’s Degree in English (Lit.) from the English and Foreign Language University, Hyderabad, India. Before joining RTC, she was teaching in various government higher secondary schools in Bhutan, gaining over 19 years of experience and knowledge in teaching. She hails from eastern Bhutan, Mongar. She is a passionate teacher with rich insight and experience in teaching English and pedagogy.
Jacqueline Hadel is currently on the EL Specialist Roster and recently served as an English Language Fellow for the U.S. Department of State at the University of Tartu at Narva College in Narva, Estonia. She has also served as a Global Teacher Trainer for UNICEF projects in Beirut, Lebanon, and for an American Council Teacher Training project in Shahrisabz, Uzbekistan. Jacqueline has extensive international experience, having lived, taught, and trained in over 40 countries. Her teaching and training focuses on enhancing English language education and developing teacher training programmes.
Dr Sheelpa Sweety is an Indian national with a PhD in English Language Teaching and a Master’s in Linguistics from Jawaharlal Nehru University, Delhi. Her research interests encompass English Language Teaching, language Policy and the intersections of Gender and Language. She has more than five years of teaching and research experience along with many publications in academic journals. She has supervised a doctoral thesis and numerous master’s theses. Additionally, she has successfully qualified the University Grants Commission - National Eligibility Test and the Junior Research Fellowship and her work is driven by a commitment to exploring and addressing the dynamic challenges and opportunities in language education today.
Mr Unnikrishnan P. is a cinematographer from Kerala, India. He has experience teaching film technology, especially cinematography for more than five years in reputed higher education institutions including the premier LV Prasad College of Media Studies. He has done cinematography for several corporate videos, music videos and short films. He has also served as a TV producer at Kite Victers channel and produced more than 200 episodes of educational content. He holds a BSc. in Film Technology with a specialisation in Cinematography (2013) from SRM University, Chennai, Tamil Nadu and an MSc. Electronic Media (2015) from Bangalore University, Bangalore, Karnataka.
Mr. Badsha Das is from Falakata, India. He holds a postgraduate degree in Mass Communication from the University of North Bengal and a Bachelor's degree in Mass Communication and Journalism from Siliguri College, West Bengal. He has over eight years of experience in video production and editing. Mr. Das has previously worked as an Educational Engineer in the Department of Mass Communication and Journalism at Salesian College (Autonomous) in Siliguri, India. His areas of interest include the Philosophy of Media, Media Criticism, and Film Studies.
Mr. Siva Sankar Venkata Krishnan is from Tamil Nadu, India. He has an undergraduate degree in Political Science, and a postgraduate degree in Sociology from Annamalai University, India. He also did his second postgraduate degree in Philosophy and Religion from Madurai Kamaraj University, India. Furthermore, he has a postgraduate diploma in Journalism and Mass Communication. He has 18+ years of experience as a visual communication and multimedia faculty in various institutions in India. He specialised in teaching digital graphics design and web publishing using updated software as per industry standards. He is personally a very philosophical and spiritual seeker. He is also a physical fitness trainer who trains many people to achieve their fitness goals.