My Turing Scheme Experience in Mumbai: Creativity, Culture and Personal Growth

I have always been interested in creativity, storytelling, film and different cultures. My own background and experiences have also influenced the kinds of stories I am interested in telling.

When the opportunity arose to undertake an international traineeship, Mumbai felt particularly relevant to me. It is a city with an extraordinary relationship with film, television, theatre, publishing and popular culture.

I wanted to experience that creative environment first-hand rather than simply learning about it from the UK.

I was also looking for personal growth. Travelling overseas for a professional placement requires independence, adaptability and confidence, and I wanted to challenge myself in all of those areas.

Organising an overseas traineeship involved more preparation than I initially anticipated. There were travel arrangements, accommodation, documentation and funding requirements alongside the practical arrangements for the placement itself.

Receiving Turing Scheme funding made a significant difference. International experiences can involve substantial costs, and having financial support helped make the opportunity accessible to me.

As a student registered with Additional Learning Support (ALS) at Bournemouth University, organisation and planning can sometimes present additional challenges for me. The experience therefore also encouraged me to develop strategies for managing a significant international project independently.

Looking back, the preparation itself was part of the learning experience.

Mumbai is difficult to describe until you experience it.

It is fast, colourful, creative, crowded, energetic and constantly changing. There always seems to be something happening.

Although I was familiar with Indian culture, living and working in Mumbai gave me a different perspective. Experiencing a place professionally is very different from visiting it as a tourist.

I became much more aware of how people communicate, build professional relationships and approach creative work in different cultural environments.

There were inevitably moments that required adjustment, but learning to navigate those differences became one of the most valuable parts of the experience.

My role was Creative Intern with Continuum Film & Theatre Production Company.

The placement involved creative research supporting film and theatre development, assistance with script and project development, digital marketing and website support, content organisation, production assistance, and general creative and administrative work.

This connected particularly well with my MA because so much of my academic work revolves around storytelling, writing, audiences and the development of creative ideas.

One of the things I valued most was seeing how ideas move from the creative stage towards practical development.

At university, you can spend a great deal of time developing your own writing and analysing creative work. During the placement, I was able to think about creativity from another perspective: how ideas are communicated, developed, organised and ultimately prepared for an audience.

English was the main language I used professionally, but being in a multilingual and multicultural environment also made me much more conscious of communication styles and cultural context.

One of the biggest benefits of the traineeship was being able to connect what I had learned academically with practical creative work.

My MA had already encouraged me to think critically about narrative, identity, audience and publishing. The placement allowed me to consider how those ideas translate into professional creative environments.

It also reinforced something I increasingly believe: creative careers are becoming much more interdisciplinary.

Writers are no longer necessarily working only on books. Stories can move between publishing, film, theatre, digital platforms and emerging forms of media.

That has influenced how I think about my own future career.

I went into the placement with professional and academic experience, but working internationally developed a different kind of confidence.

I became more comfortable adapting my communication style, working with people from different cultural backgrounds and navigating unfamiliar situations.

It also strengthened skills including:

• creative research and idea development
• communication and collaboration
• adaptability and problem-solving
• digital content and marketing
• organisation and independent working
• intercultural awareness
• linking academic knowledge with professional practice

Most importantly, I became more confident about building a career that combines writing, film, digital creativity and emerging technology rather than feeling that I needed to choose only one creative discipline.

The experience was not only about my traineeship.

Exploring Mumbai was an important part of understanding the culture around me.

From Bandra and Khar to Colaba, Kala Ghoda, Marine Drive and South Mumbai, I was able to experience very different sides of the city.

Mumbai's combination of heritage, modern development, creativity and entrepreneurship particularly fascinated me.

There is inspiration everywhere — architecture, conversations, food, fashion, advertising, cinema and simply observing everyday life.

For someone interested in storytelling, it is an extraordinary city in which to spend time.

Perhaps the most valuable part of undertaking an international placement was discovering that I could adapt.

Going overseas does not mean everything will run perfectly. There can be unexpected changes, practical difficulties and moments when you have to rethink your plans.

I learned to be more flexible and to solve problems rather than expecting everything to follow a predetermined plan.

I also became more aware of my own cultural perspective. Being in another environment makes you notice assumptions and habits that you may never think about when you are at home.

That increased cultural awareness is something I will carry into my writing and future creative work.

If I could give myself advice before starting the experience, it would be: prepare carefully, but don't expect to control every part of the journey.

International experiences are valuable partly because things are different.

Research your destination, understand your placement, organise your paperwork carefully and ask for support when you need it. But also leave space for unexpected experiences.

For students with disabilities or additional learning needs, I would particularly say: don't automatically assume an international opportunity isn't for you.

Ask what support is available and plan around your individual needs. You may need to approach the experience differently, but that does not mean you cannot benefit from it.

My Turing Scheme traineeship strengthened my interest in working internationally and across different areas of the creative industries.

It also increased my confidence in connecting academic research with practical creative work and communicating across cultures.

My greatest achievement was not one individual task. It was completing an international creative experience that challenged me both professionally and personally and coming away with a clearer understanding of the direction I want my work to take.

I would absolutely recommend an overseas traineeship to other students.

Sometimes the experiences that take us furthest outside our normal environment are the ones that teach us the most about what we are capable of.