Priya Aggarwal

Priya Aggarwal was the daughter of Indian immigrants who was born and raised in Queens, New York. She worked part-time for her uncle in his souvenir shop, NYC Gift, in Times Square in Midtown Manhattan. She was desperate to fit in with cool kids at her school, even though they exhibited racist and inconsiderate behavior toward her. She did not want other people, including her parents, to know about her exceptional intelligence and interest in botany because she was afraid of the pressure that would bring. Her brother, Mohinder, committed suicide due to untreated anxiety and depression, and she worried that the same thing might happen to her.