Baani was an analyst at ASPI’s International Cyber Policy Centre. She also leads the Centre's strategic engagement with South Asia, with a focus on India.

Her research and policy interests include Indian foreign and security policy, India’s domestic critical tech and cyber developments, the Quad, and India-China border tensions. She also researches broader issues of Indian Ocean security, South Asian regional dynamics and the Indo-Pacific.

She has published reports and articles about India’s relationship with China and the Quad, Indian defence modernisation, India-Australia relations as well as the Quad’s critical technology cooperation.

Baani has a Bachelor of Arts majoring in Asian Studies and International Relations from the University of New South Wales, Sydney. Prior to ASPI, Baani was a senior foreign policy research officer in the Political section of the Australian High Commission, New Delhi. She also worked in international development programs in India, with a focus on women’s rights.

She has language skills in Hindi and Punjabi.