Leena Pendharkar

Leena Pendharkar is an award-winning writer and director. Her most recent work is the television movie, A Date with Deception for Mar Vista/Lifetime, and two episodes of the kids’ show, Hello Jack!, for Apple TV Plus. Leena is also an alum of the Warner Brothers, CBS, and Sony Diverse Directors programs.

She premiered her sophomore feature film, 20 Weeks, at the Los Angeles Film Festival. Based, in part, on her own story, it is about a couple that must make some tough decisions after their baby is diagnosed with a serious health condition at 20 weeks in utero.

20 Weeks played in festivals all over the country, won the Best Feature Film Award at the Maryland Film Festival, the Best Editing Award at the Tallgrass Film Festival, was selected as one of the best independent films of 2017 by Film Threat, and was described as an “intimate, compassionate take on abortion” by the Los Angeles Times. It was distributed in theaters and on Hulu, and is now available on a number of platforms. She has also made several award winning short films, including Dandekar Makes a Sandwich, which was selected as a Vimeo Staff Pick.