About
Hi! I'm Shebani. I'm an Indian-American artist and writer based in Philly, and I use my art to tell stories and create social change. I’m a sociologist by training and work in nonprofits and local government. My day job, art practice, and identity all inform each other. Across mediums, my work deals with themes like race, identity, mental and physical health, and structural inequality.
I use illustration and humor to brings ideas and narratives to life. I work with nonprofits and organizers to help make research and campaigns engaging and understandable. I love collaborating with other artists on projects ranging from graphic essays to comic webseries. I’m passionate about teaching, and I regularly conduct workshops on comics and social justice.
Let’s work together! I’d love to hear from you.
PUBLICATIONS And Exhibitions
The New York Historical
Kamaladevi comic feeatured in the upcoming show The New York Sari.
Philadelphia Sketch Club
Sculpture and painting featured in the upcoming show Art Inspired By Food.
McSweeney’s Internet Tendency
“Imagined Messages From My Dying Plants.” 2024.
“Youtube Yoga for South-Asian Americans.” 2023.
Seventh Wave
“DEI, Bitch.” 2024.
Slant’d, Issue 06: Homecoming
Illustrations for poem, Real I.D. 2024.
MemeZine
“A Pitch for a Taco Bell Cantina.” 2024.
The Belladonna Comedy
“The World’s Worst Artisanal Cocktails.” 2024.
“The Summer I Turned Back to Ugly.” 2023.
SAAG, Volume 2, Issue 1
“A Freelancer’s Guide to Decision-Making.” 2023.
Soham Dance Space website
Reflections on Soham’s “Transform/Affirm” Kick-off Convening. 2022.
Lumpenpockets Mag, Issue 1
“Social Distancing Guide for Desi Parents.” 2022.
Cape Mag, Issue 1
“What to do if you have a crush.” 2021.
LitHub
Shebani Rao and Sejal Shah. “Finding Friendship in Pandemic Collaboration.” 2021.
Haywood Burns Institute
Illustrated EM Toolkit: Ending the Use of Virtual Shackles. 2020.
The Margins, Asian American Writers’ Workshop
Illustrated Kimarlee Nguyen’s short story, “This Is a Story We All Know.” 2020.
On Privilege, Fraudulence, and Teaching As Learning: Selected Essays 1981-2019
Illustrated famed sociologist and feminist Peggy McIntosh’s collection of essays. 2019.
Tides Magazine
Kamaladevi comic featured in article, “The Other Kamala.” 2019.
Buzzfeed India
"This Woman Imagined Desi Women as Hollywood Romcom Leads and We Need to Make This Happen." 2017.
The Aerogram
"Illustrator Shebani Rao Shares 'Eight Things Only Desi-American Kids Will Understand." 2017.
"Comic Celebrates Life of a Badass Desi Feminist Hero." 2017.
Buzzfeed
"Someone Illustrated Leslie Knope's Compliments and They're Pretty Damn Cool." (I'm the "Someone.”) 2016.
"Someone Illustrated Leslie Knope Compliments and They Rock." (I'm still the "Someone.") 2016.
Teaching, Speaking, Interviews
Workshops and lectures
“Learn to Make Mumbai Street Food,” a cooking workshop held at Rowhouse Grocery. 2025.
St. Joseph’s University, “Philadelphia’s Criminal Legal System” lecture for Inequality in American Society. 2025.
Georgetown University, “Oral History and Comics” lecture for an English course, Asian American Women’s Literature. 2023 and 2024.
Free Library of Philadelphia. “Make a Comic About Your Chinatown Experience!” Part of a Philadelphia Folkore Project series. 2024.
UC Davis, “Personal Liberation Through Comic Art” workshop for the UC Davis Women’s Center. 2021.
UC Davis, “Quarantine House” workshop for a Women’s History course, Literature as Aesthetics of Resistance. 2021.
Panelist
St. Joseph’s University. Participated in a discussion on working with the South Asian American Digital Archives (SAADA) and engaging with community history through art. 2019.
George Washington University, Participated in a discussion on art and activism with GWU’s South Asian Society. 2018.
Interviews
Apex Express. “Talking About Comics” podcast w/Thi Bui and Rachelle Cruz. 2018.
The Aerogram. “A Q&A With Comics Creator Shebani Rao.” 2018.