Samhita Sunya's research interests include world film history, Asian cinemas, intersections of (old and new) audio-visual media and literature, sound studies, and postcolonial literature.

Working with Prof. Betty Joseph, Samhita completed her dissertation, “Love in the Time of Cinema: The Global Tracks of Hindi Film/Songs," and went on to a position at the American University in Beirut. She is now Assistant Professor of Middle Eastern & South Asian Languages & Cultures at the University of Virginia.