Actress Mya Rajah is on a mission to follow her dreams and create a path for other people of color.
Growing up in Toronto of Sri Lankan descent, Mya didn’t see any little ‘brown’ girls in the movies and television shows she watched. Being an actress was not something her strict parents wanted for her. But as if by fate, she was enrolled at a theater school because it was the closest to their house – and that’s where it all began.
Acting offered this young girl a chance to transform into other people. She was able to escape from an abusive home life, even if only for a few moments. And she was good at it, too. But her path wasn’t so straight.
Mya was derailed from acting professionally by her parent’s insistence to become something more acceptable. So, she went to nursing school and delayed her dream. As soon as she graduated, she found a way to pursue both by moving to Detroit, Michigan. She worked as a nurse but also enrolled in Wayne State University to study the craft of acting with Lisa Hodge Kander. She spent several years there before transitioning to a traveling nurse position which allowed her to soak up experience all over the United States.
Eventually, Mya landed in Los Angeles and her creative spirit further emerged. Not only was she pursuing a career in acting, but she started writing and creating her own projects. As a multi-hyphenate, her focus is writing romantic-comedy feature films with a female lead of color.
Today, Mya is making a difference in people’s lives, literally saving them as a Cardiac Nurse, and by forging an artistic pursuit. “I never saw women of color represented this way growing up,” Mya shares. “I want to encourage everyone that you can find love, you can pursue big careers, and you can follow your creative dreams, too.”
