Abhi Kumar
The cultural diversity at UWCSEA showed me the value of having different points of view and how these could be used to more effectively solve real-world problems and challenges. I’ve adopted this philosophy throughout my life and imbued it in my work – through unity we can achieve so much more."Abhi Kumar ’97, Writer, Director and Co-founder of Warrior9 VR
My time at UWCSEA Dover really opened my mind, allowing me to look at the world beyond the social norms of society. It made me think about what I wanted to achieve as an individual rather than what others wanted me to achieve. The cultural diversity in the school showed me the value of having different points of view and how these could be used to more effectively solve real-world problems and challenges. I’ve adopted this philosophy throughout my life and imbued it in my work – through unity we can achieve so much more.
I was a boarder for my entire seven years at UWCSEA and they were truly some of the best years of my life. My time there taught me to be independent and fend for myself but also gave me friendships that last till today. Almost anywhere I go in the world, there is likely to be someone there who I knew in school.
I started writing when I was at UWCSEA. At first it was poetry and prose (I wrote my first novel when I was 14) followed by plays for the theatre. Andrew Howard was my English teacher during my IB. His classes helped me to gain a better understanding of literature, and helped to grow my creativity immensely. I continued my passion for writing when studying at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, while balancing it out by taking business, accounting and finance classes. While doing my Masters in Accountancy at Indiana University, Bloomington, I joined the Bloomington Playwrights Project and had several plays performed. I eventually moved on to writing screenplays for television and film.
When I returned to Singapore, I maintained my passion for writing but worked in the financial sector. It wasn’t easy to balance out the two but it was necessary – my writing fuelled my soul whereas my job fuelled my stomach. I did this for almost a decade before deciding that there was more to life than sitting behind a desk all day.
Today, I’m co-founder of a media studio I co-own with my wife Ashima Thomas ‘97, who I met in UWCSEA. I am using my skills to create stories to help people experience different points of view, to bring us closer together and inspire positive change in the world. All my work is focused on bringing people together in some way, shape or form. I’m living my dream and UWCSEA played a big part in getting me there.
In the IB Diploma, Abhi studied English, History, Business Management, Math, Malay, Science, Technology and Social Change.