Editing Mira Nair

{{Short description|Indian-American filmmaker (born 1957)}}
{{EngvarB|date=September 2013}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2020}}
{{Infobox person
| name               = Mira Nair
| image              = MN main.jpg
| caption            = Nair in 2011
| birth_date         = {{Birth date and age|df=yes|1957|10|15}}
| birth_place        = [[Rourkela]], [[Orissa]], India (now [[Odisha]], India)
| alma_mater         = {{ubl|[[Miranda House, University of Delhi]]|[[Harvard University]]}}
| occupation         = {{hlist|Film director|Film producer}}
| years_active       = 1986–present
| spouse             = {{ubl|{{Marriage|[[Mitch Epstein]]||1987|reason=divorce}}|{{Marriage|[[Mahmood Mamdani]]|1991}}}}
| children           = [[Zohran Mamdani]]
| awards             = {{ubl
| [[Padma Bhushan]] (2012)
| [[Golden Lion]], Venice (2001)
| [[Caméra d'Or]], Cannes (1988)
}}
}}
'''Mira Nair''' (born 15 October 1957) is an [[Indian-American]] filmmaker based in New York City.<ref>{{cite news|last=Spelling|first=Ian|title=Director likes to do her own thing|newspaper=Waterloo Region Record|date=1 September 2004|pages=C4}}</ref> Her production company is [[Mirabai Films]]. Among her films are ''[[Mississippi Masala]]'', ''[[The Namesake (film)|The Namesake]]'', the [[Golden Lion]]–winning ''[[Monsoon Wedding]]'', and ''[[Salaam Bombay!]]'', which received nominations for the [[Academy Award for Best International Feature Film|Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film]] and the [[BAFTA Award for Best Film Not in the English Language]].

==Early life and education==
Nair was born in [[Rourkela]], [[Odisha]], India, into a [[Punjabis|Punjabi]] family. She grew up with her two older brothers and parents in [[Bhubaneswar]], [[Odisha]].<ref name="Applause Theater & Cinema Books">{{cite book|last1=Muir|first1=John Kenneth|title=Mercy in Her Eyes: The Films of Mira Nair|date=1 June 2006|publisher=Applause Theater & Cinema Books|isbn=1557836493}}</ref> Her father, Amrit Lal Nair, was an officer of the [[Indian Administrative Service]], and her mother, Parveen Nayyar, was a social worker.<ref name="Mira Nair">{{cite web|title=Mira Nair|url=http://www.notablebiographies.com/newsmakers2/2007-Li-Pr/Nair-Mira.html|website=Encyclopedia of World Biography|access-date=29 April 2015}}</ref>

Nair lived in Bhubaneswar until age 18 and attended a convent, following which she left to attend [[Loreto Convent, Tara Hall, Shimla]],<ref>{{cite news |title=I'd eat onions before kissing Shashi Tharoor: Mira Nair |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/hindi/bollywood/news/Id-eat-onions-before-kissing-Shashi-Tharoor-Mira-Nair/articleshow/16235108.cms |work=The Times of India|language=en}}</ref> an Irish-Catholic missionary school, where she developed an infatuation with English literature. She then went on to study at [[Miranda House]] of [[Delhi University]], where she majored in sociology. 

Nair applied for a transfer, and at 19, she attended [[Harvard University]] on a scholarship.<ref name="voices.cla.umn.edu">{{cite web|last1=Blenski|first1=Simon|last2=Debreyne|first2=Adrien Maurice|last3=Hegewisch|first3=Martha Eugina|last4=Trivedi|first4=Avani Anant|title=Mira Nair|url=http://voices.cla.umn.edu/artistpages/nairMira.php|publisher=University of Minnesota|access-date=30 April 2015}}</ref> She concentrated in Visual and Environmental Studies, with a focus on  documentary filmmaking, and graduated in 1979.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Walsh |first=Colleen |date=2022-03-04 |title=Filmmaker Mira Nair donates archive to Harvard |url=https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2022/03/filmmaker-mira-nair-donates-archive-to-harvard/ |access-date=2025-04-03 |website=Harvard Gazette |language=en-US}}</ref>

==Career==
Before she became a filmmaker, Nair was originally interested in acting, and at one point she performed plays written by [[Badal Sarkar]], a [[Bengali theatre|Bengali performer]]. While she studied at Harvard University, Nair became involved in the theater program and won a Boylston Prize for her performance of [[Jocasta]]'s speech from [[Seneca the Younger|Seneca]]'s ''[[Oedipus (Seneca)|Oedipus]]''.<ref name="Applause Theater & Cinema Books"/>

Nair commented on film-making in a 2004 interview with FF2 Media's Jan Huttner:<blockquote>It’s all in how I do it. Keeping the buns on the seats is very important to me. It requires that ineffable thing called rhythm and balance in movie-making. Foils have to be created, counter-weights. From the intimacy, let’s say, of a love scene to the visceral, jugular quality of war. That shift is something in the editing, how one cuts from the intimate to the epic that keeps you there waiting. The energy propels you.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Jan Chats with Internationally-Acclaimed Director Mira Nair About Her New Film 'Vanity Fair'|url=http://www.films42.com/chats/mira_nair.asp|last=Huttner|first=Jan|date=15 August 2004|website=FF2 Media|access-date=18 May 2020}}</ref></blockquote>Nair said to ''Image Journal'' in 2017 that she chose directing over any other art form because it was collaborative. "That’s why I am neither a photographer nor writer," she said. "I like to work with people, and my strength, if any, is that. Working with life."<ref>{{Cite web|title=A Conversation with Mira Nair|url=https://imagejournal.org/article/conversation-mira-nair/|website=Image Journal|language=en-US|access-date=2020-05-18}}</ref>

===Documentaries===
At the start of her film-making career, Nair primarily made documentaries in which she explored Indian cultural tradition. For her film thesis at Harvard between 1978 and 1979, Nair produced a black-and-white film titled ''Jama Masjid Street Journal''. In the 18-minute film, Nair explored the streets of [[Old Delhi]] and had casual conversations with Indian locals.<ref name="voices.cla.umn.edu"/>

In 1982, she made her second documentary titled ''So Far from India'', which is a 52-minute film that followed an Indian newspaper dealer living in the subways of New York, while his pregnant wife waited for him to return home.<ref name="Mira Nair"/> This film was recognized as a Best Documentary winner at the [[American Film Festival]] and New York's Global Village Film Festival.<ref name="voices.cla.umn.edu"/>

Her third documentary, ''India Cabaret'', released in 1984, revealed the exploitation of female strippers in [[Mumbai|Bombay]], and followed a customer who regularly visited a local strip club while his wife stayed at home.<ref name="voices.cla.umn.edu"/> Nair raised roughly $130,000 for the project. The 59-minute film was shot over a span of two months. It was criticized by Nair's family.<ref name="Applause Theater & Cinema Books"/><ref name="Mira Nair"/> Her fourth and last documentary, made for [[Canadian television]], explored how [[amniocentesis]] was being used to determine the sex of fetuses.{{Citation needed|date=June 2020}}

In 2001, with The Laughing Club of India, she explored [[Laughter yoga|laughter based on yoga]]. Founder Dr. Madan Kararia spoke of the club's history and the growth of laughing clubs across the country, and subsequently the world. The documentary included testimonials from members of the laughter clubs who described how the practice had improved or changed their lives. Its featured segments included a group of workers in an electrical products factory in Mumbai who took time off to laugh during their coffee break.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HEte5ilhCTcC&q=mira+nair+++documentary&pg=PR9|title=Mercy in Her Eyes: The Films of Mira Nair|last=Muir|first=John Kenneth|date=2006|publisher=Hal Leonard Corporation|isbn=9781557836496|pages=156–158|language=en}}</ref>

===Feature films===
In 1983 with her friend [[Sooni Taraporevala]], Nair co-wrote ''[[Salaam Bombay!]]''. Nair sought out real "street children" to more authentically portray the lives of children who survived in the streets and were deprived of a true childhood.<ref name="Applause Theater & Cinema Books"/> Though the film did not do well at the [[box office]], it won 23 international awards, including the Camera D’or and Prix du Public at the 1998 [[Cannes Film Festival]]. It was nominated at the 1989 [[Academy Awards]] for [[Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film|Best Foreign Language Film]].<ref>{{cite news |last=Crossette |first=Barabara |date=23 December 1990 |title=Homeless and Hungry Youths of India |url=https://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C0CE0DA1531F930A15751C1A966958260 |newspaper=The New York Times |access-date=13 October 2008 }}</ref>

Nair and Taraporevala next worked together on the 1991 film ''[[Mississippi Masala]],'' which told the story of Ugandan-born Indians displaced in [[Mississippi]].<ref name="Mira Nair"/> The film centers on a carpet-cleaner business owner ([[Denzel Washington]]) who falls in love with the daughter ([[Sarita Choudhury]]) of one of his Indian clients. The film revealed the prejudice in African-American and Indian communities. It was well received by critics, earned a standing ovation at the 1992 [[Sundance Film Festival]], and won three awards at the [[Venice Film Festival]].<ref name="voices.cla.umn.edu"/>

Nair went on to direct four more films before she produced ''[[Monsoon Wedding]]''. Released in 2001, the film told the story of a [[Punjabi people|Punjabi]] Indian wedding, written by [[Sabrina Dhawan]]. Employing a small crew and casting some of Nair's acquaintances and relatives, the film grossed over $30 million worldwide. The film was awarded the [[Golden Lion]] award at the Venice Film Festival, making Nair the first female recipient of the award.<ref>{{cite news |last=Whitney |first=Anna |date=10 September 2001 |title=Indian director is first woman to win Golden Lion |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/news/indian-director-is-first-woman-to-win-golden-lion-9225222.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220515/https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/news/indian-director-is-first-woman-to-win-golden-lion-9225222.html |archive-date=15 May 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |newspaper=The Independent |location=London |access-date=8 December 2009}}</ref> Nair then directed the Golden Globe-winning ''[[Hysterical Blindness (film)|Hysterical Blindness]]'' (2002), followed by making [[William Makepeace Thackeray]]'s epic ''[[Vanity Fair (2004 film)|Vanity Fair]]'' (2004).

In 2007, Nair was asked to direct ''[[Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (film)|Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix]]'', but turned it down to work on ''[[The Namesake (film)|The Namesake]]''.<ref name="Mira Nair"/> Based on the book by [[Pulitzer Prize]]-winner [[Jhumpa Lahiri]], Sooni Taraporevala's screenplay follows the son of Indian immigrants who wants to fit in with New York City society, but struggles to get away from his family's traditional ways. The film was presented with the Dartmouth Film Award and was also honored with the Pride of India award at the [[Bollywood Movie Awards]].<ref>{{cite news |date=23 April 2007 |title=Bollywood to honour Mira Nair with 'Pride of India' award |url=http://www.hindustantimes.com/StoryPage/StoryPage.aspx?id=a8b47023-270e-47f0-a6c2-399a750ab572& |newspaper=[[Hindustan Times]]|agency=Press Trust of India (PTI) |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070930055840/http://www.hindustantimes.com/StoryPage/StoryPage.aspx?id=a8b47023-270e-47f0-a6c2-399a750ab572& |archive-date=30 September 2007}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |date=28 May 2007 |title=Mira Nair, Asha Parekh honoured at Bollywood awards in New York |url=http://story.malaysiasun.com/index.php/ct/9/cid/f825b92e19df636a/id/252152/cs/1/ |newspaper=Malaysia Sun |agency=Indo-Asian News Service (IANS) |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120207004720/http://story.malaysiasun.com/index.php/ct/9/cid/f825b92e19df636a/id/252152/cs/1/ |archive-date=7 February 2012 |access-date=8 December 2009}}</ref>

This was followed by the [[Amelia Earhart]] biopic ''[[Amelia (2009 film)|Amelia]]'' (2009), starring [[Hilary Swank]] and [[Richard Gere]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.npr.org/transcripts/114003628|website=NPR|title=Mira Nair, Discovering A Very Modern 'Amelia'|first=Melissa|last=Block|date=October 22, 2009|access-date=September 14, 2021}}</ref> The film received predominantly negative reviews.<ref>[https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/amelia_2009/ " 'Amelia' Reviews, Pictures."] ''Rotten Tomatoes, IGN Entertainment''.</ref><ref>[https://www.metacritic.com/film/titles/amelia " 'Amelia' (2009): Reviews."] ''Metacritic''.</ref> It was also a [[box-office bomb]], grossing $19.6 million against a budget of $40 million.<ref>[https://boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=amelia.htm "Amelia."] ''Box Office Mojo,'' January 10, 2010.</ref>

In 2012, Nair directed ''[[The Reluctant Fundamentalist (film)|The Reluctant Fundamentalist]]'', a thriller based on the best-selling novel by Mohsin Hamid. It received mixed reviews from critics, and was a box office bomb, earning only $2.1&nbsp;million worldwide on a $15&nbsp;million budget.<ref name="New York Times budget">{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/21/movies/mira-nair-on-the-reluctant-fundamentalist.html|title=Crossing Dangerous Borders: Mira Nair on 'The Reluctant Fundamentalist'|work=[[The New York Times]]|date=19 April 2013 |accessdate=12 October 2013|last1=Kaplan |first1=Fred }}</ref><ref name="film budget">{{cite web|url=http://gulfnews.com/about-gulf-news/al-nisr-portfolio/weekend-review/indian-director-mira-nair-on-the-reluctant-fundamentalist-1.1181142|title=Indian director Mira Nair on 'The Reluctant Fundamentalist'|work=Weekend Review|date=9 May 2013 |accessdate=24 July 2013}}</ref><ref name="film box office">{{cite web|title=The Reluctant Fundamentalist (2013) – International|work=[[Box Office Mojo]]|url=https://boxofficemojo.com/movies/?page=intl&id=reluctantfundamentalist.htm|accessdate=10 December 2015}}</ref>  It opened the 2012 Venice Film Festival to critical acclaim and was released worldwide in early 2013. ''The Journal of Commonwealth Literature'' questioned "how the ambivalence and provocativeness of the 'source' text translates into the film adaptation, and the extent to which the film format makes the narrative more palatable and appealing to wider audiences as compared to the novel’s target readership."<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Lau|first1=Lisa|last2=Mendes|first2=Ana Cristina|year=2018|title=Post-9/11 re-orientalism: Confrontation and conciliation in Mohsin Hamid's and Mira Nair's The Reluctant Fundamentalist|journal=The Journal of Commonwealth Literature|language=en|volume=53|issue=1|pages=80|doi=10.1177/0021989416631791|s2cid=148197670|issn=0021-9894|url=http://eprints.keele.ac.uk/1559/8/lau_jcl_2016.pdf}}</ref>

Nair's 2016 film ''[[Queen of Katwe]]'', a [[Walt Disney Pictures]] production, starred [[Lupita Nyong'o]] and [[David Oyelowo]] and was based on the story of Ugandan chess prodigy [[Phiona Mutesi]].<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2015/08/lupita-nyongo-disney-d23-star-wars-jungle-book-queen-of-katwe|magazine=Vanity Fair|title=Why Lupita Nyong'o, Not the Superheroes, Represents the Future of Disney|first=Joanna|last=Robinson|date=August 16, 2015|access-date=September 14, 2021}}</ref> It had a budget of $15&nbsp;million, and grossed $10.4&nbsp;million.<ref name=DeadlineKatwe>{{cite news | last1=Fleming | first1=Mike Jr. | title=David Oyelowo & Lupita Nyong'o In Talks To Star In 'Queen Of Katwe' For Disney | url=https://deadline.com/2015/01/david-oyelowo-lupita-nyongo-queen-of-katwe-chess-movie-1201345794/# | access-date=April 27, 2015 | website=[[Deadline Hollywood]] | date=January 9, 2015}}</ref><ref name="BOM">{{cite web | url= https://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=queenofkatwe.htm | title=Queen of Katwe (2016) | website=Box Office Moj}}</ref>

===Short films===
Nair's short films include ''A Fork, a Spoon and a Knight,'' inspired by the [[Nelson Mandela]] quote, ″Difficulties break some men but make others.″ She contributed to ''[[11'09"01 September 11]]'' (2002) in which 11 filmmakers reacted to the events of 11 September 2001. Other titles include ''How Can It Be?'' (2008), ''Migration'' (2008), ''New York, I Love You'' (2009) and her collaboration with, among others, [[Emir Kusturica]] and [[Guillermo Arriaga]] on the compilation feature ''[[Words with Gods]]''.<ref name="IMDb">{{cite web|url=https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0619762/?ref_=pro_nm_visitcons|website=IMDb|title=Mira Nair|access-date=September 14, 2021}}</ref>

===Other work===
A longtime activist, Nair set up an annual film-makers' laboratory, [[Maisha Film Lab]] in Kampala, Uganda. Since 2005, young directors in East Africa have been trained at this non-profit facility with the belief that "''If we don't tell our stories, no one else will''".<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.dailyo.in/arts/mira-nair-films-monsoon-wedding-riz-ahmed-lupita-nyongo-fawad-khan-hollywood/story/1/13059.html |title=If we don't tell our stories no one else will: Mira Nair |last=Bamzai |first=Kaveree |publisher=DailyO |date=2016-09-22 |access-date=2018-09-24 }}</ref> Maisha as of 2018 was building a school with Architect Raul Pantaleo, winner of Aga Khan Award for Architecture, and his company Studio Tamassociati.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.autodesk.com/redshift/tamassociati-humanitarian-architecture/ |title=TAMassociati's Humanitarian Architecture |last=Sisson |first=Patrick |work=Redshift EN |publisher=Autodesk |date=2015-04-09 |access-date=2018-09-24 }}</ref>

In 1998, she used the profits from ''Salaam Bombay!'' to create the [[Salaam Baalak Trust]] which works with street children in India.<ref>{{cite web|title=mira Nair|url=https://amakula.org/mira-nair/|website=Amakul International Film Festival|date=12 March 2016|access-date=12 September 2017}}</ref>

A musical adaptation of ''Monsoon Wedding'', directed by Nair, premiered at the [[Berkeley Repertory Theatre]], running from 5 May to 16 July 2017.<ref>[http://www.playbill.com/article/monsoon-wedding-kicks-off-developmental-lab-today ″Monsoon Wedding Kicks Off Developmental Lab Today″], ''Playbill'', 30 May 2016</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Monsoon Wedding|url=https://www.berkeleyrep.org/season/1617/10662.asp|website=berkeleyrep.org|access-date=19 September 2017}}</ref>

As of 2015, she lived in New York City, where she was an adjunct professor in the Film Division of the School of Arts for [[Columbia University]]. The university had a collaboration with Nair's Maisha Film Lab, and offered opportunities for international students to work together and share their interests in film-making.<ref>{{cite web|title=Global Programs|url=http://arts.columbia.edu/global-programs?&home=1865|website=Columbia University School of the Arts|publisher=Columbia University|access-date=30 April 2015|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150624181018/http://arts.columbia.edu/global-programs?&home=1865|archive-date=24 June 2015}}</ref>

In July 2020, journalist [[Ellen Barry (journalist)|Ellen Barry]] announced that her [[Pulitzer Prize]]-nominated story "The Jungle Prince of Delhi" about the "[[Nawab of Awadh|royal family of Oudh]]", published in ''[[The New York Times]]'', would be adapted into a web series for [[Amazon Studios]] by Nair.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Krishnankutty|first=Pia|date=2020-07-10|title=Mira Nair to adapt New York Times story 'The Jungle Prince of Delhi' into Amazon series|url=https://theprint.in/world/mira-nair-to-adapt-new-york-times-story-the-jungle-prince-of-delhi-into-amazon-series/458158/|access-date=2020-07-11|website=ThePrint}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|date=2020-07-10|title=Mira Nair to adapt New York Times article The Jungle Prince of Delhi into a series|url=https://indianexpress.com/article/entertainment/web-series/mira-nair-to-adapt-the-jungle-prince-of-delhi-amazon-series-6498783/|access-date=2020-07-11|website=The Indian Express}}</ref>

In March 2021 it was announced Nair would direct a ten episode TV series for [[Disney+]] reimagining the [[National Treasure (film series)|''National Treasure'' series]] with a new cast.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Andreeva|first=Nellie|date=2021-03-24|title='National Treasure' TV Series With Latina Lead Greenlighted By Disney+; Mira Nair To Direct|url=https://deadline.com/2021/03/national-treasure-tv-series-reimagening-latina-lead-disney-plus-mira-nair-1234720950/|access-date=2021-03-24|website=Deadline|language=en-US}}</ref>

==Personal life==
In 1977, Nair met her first husband, photographer [[Mitch Epstein]], when taking photography classes at Harvard University.<ref name="Applause Theater & Cinema Books"/> They divorced by 1987.

In 1988 Nair met her second husband, [[Indians in Uganda|Indo-Ugandan]] political scientist [[Mahmood Mamdani]], while in [[Uganda]] doing research for the film ''Mississippi Masala''. Like his wife, Mamdani teaches at [[Columbia University]].<ref name="Mira Nair"/> Their son, [[Zohran Mamdani]], was born in Uganda in 1991. In 2020, Zohran won a seat representing [[Astoria, Queens]], in the [[New York State Assembly]].<ref>{{cite web |last1=Singh |first1=Yoshita |title=Mira Nair's son wins election to New York State assembly |url=https://www.rediff.com/news/report/mira-nairs-son-wins-election-to-ny-state-assembly/20201104.htm |work=[[Rediff.com]] |access-date=4 November 2020}}</ref> He is [[2025 New York City mayoral election|running for the office of mayor of New York City in 2025]].<ref>{{cite web |last1=Mays |first1=Jeffery C. |last2=King |first2=Maya |title=Can Zohran Mamdani, a Socialist and TikTok Savant, Become N.Y.C. Mayor? |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2025/03/23/nyregion/zohran-mamdani-mayor.html |website=[[The New York Times]] |access-date=30 April 2025 |date=23 March 2025}}</ref>

Nair has been an enthusiastic [[yoga]] practitioner for decades; when making a film, she has the cast and crew start the day with a yoga session.<ref>{{cite news |last=Dupont |first=Joan |date=21 September 2001 |title=Mira Nair Peels Back Layers of Punjabi Society |url=http://mirabaifilms.com/wordpress/?page_id=32 |newspaper=International Herald Tribune |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091228182413/http://mirabaifilms.com/wordpress/?page_id=32 |archive-date=28 December 2009}}</ref>

==Political views==
In July 2013, Nair declined an invitation to the [[Haifa International Film Festival]] as a "guest of honor" to protest Israel's policies toward [[Palestine]]. In postings on her Twitter account, Nair stated "I will go to Israel when the walls come down. I will go to Israel when occupation is gone...I will go to Israel when the state does not privilege one religion over another. I will go to Israel when Apartheid is over. I will go to Israel, soon. I stand w/ [[Academic boycotts of Israel#The Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel|Palestine for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel]] (PACBI) & the larger [[Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions|Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions]] (BDS) Mov’t." Nair was subsequently praised by PACBI, which stated that her decision to boycott Israel "helps to highlight the struggle against colonialism and apartheid." She subsequently tweeted "I will go to Israel, soon."<ref>{{cite news |date=21 July 2013 |title=Film director Mira Nair boycotting Haifa festival |url=http://www.jta.org/2013/07/21/arts-entertainment/indian-film-director-boycotts-haifa-film-festival |publisher=[[Jewish Telegraphic Agency]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |date=23 July 2013 |title=Mira Nair turns down invite to Israel film festival |url=http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/hollywood/news-interviews/Mira-Nair-turns-down-invite-to-Israel-film-festival/articleshow/21240349.cms |newspaper=The Times of India|agency=Press Trust of India (PTI)}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Sherwood |first=Harriet |date=21 July 2013 |title=Mira Nair boycotts Haifa film festival |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/jul/21/director-mira-nair-boycotts-haifa-festival |newspaper=The Guardian}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Anderman |first=Nirit |date=21 July 2013 |title=Prominent filmmaker boycotts Haifa festival to protest Israeli 'apartheid' |url=http://www.haaretz.com/culture/arts-leisure/.premium-1.537005 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |date=20 July 2013 |title=Mira Nair boycotts Israel Film Festival in Palestine's support |url=http://tribune.com.pk/story/579618/mira-nair-boycotts-israel-film-festival-in-palestines-support/ |newspaper=[[The Express Tribune]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |date=21 July 2013 |title=Award-winning director boycotts Haifa Film Festival to protest 'Apartheid'|url=http://www.jpost.com/Diplomacy-and-Politics/Award-winning-director-boycotts-Haifa-Film-Festival-to-protest-Apartheid-320514 |newspaper=The Jerusalem Post}}</ref>

==Filmography==
'''Documentary films'''
* ''Jama Street Masjid Journal'' (1979)
* ''So Far From India'' (1982)
* ''Children of a Desired Sex'' (1987)

'''TV movies'''
* ''India Cabaret'' (1985) (Documentary)
* ''[[My Own Country]]'' (1998)
* ''[[Hysterical Blindness (film)|Hysterical Blindness]]'' (2002)

'''Feature films'''
{| class="wikitable"
!Year
!Title
!Notes
|-
|1988
|''[[Salaam Bombay!]]'' 
|Nominated - [[Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film]]<br>Nominated - [[BAFTA Award for Best Film Not in the English Language]]<br>Nominated - [[Golden Globe Award for Best Foreign Language Film]]<br>Nominated - [[Filmfare Award for Best Director]]
|-
|1991
|''[[Mississippi Masala]]'' 
|Nominated - Independent Spirit Award for Best Film
|-
|1995
|''[[The Perez Family]]''
|
|-
|1996
|''[[Kama Sutra: A Tale of Love]]''
|
|-
|2001
|''[[Monsoon Wedding]]''
|[[Golden Lion]]
Nominated - [[BAFTA Award for Best Film Not in the English Language]]

Nominated - [[Golden Globe Award for Best Foreign Language Film]]
|-
|2004
|''[[Vanity Fair (2004 film)|Vanity Fair]]''
|
|-
|2006
|''[[The Namesake (film)|The Namesake]]''
|
|-
|2009
|''[[Amelia (film)|Amelia]]'' 
|
|-
|2012
|''[[The Reluctant Fundamentalist (film)|The Reluctant Fundamentalist]]'' 
|
|-
|2016
|''[[Queen of Katwe]]'' 
|
|-
|}

'''Short films'''
{| class="wikitable"
!Year
!Title
!Notes
|-
|1993
|''The Day the Mercedes Became a Hat'' 
|
|-
|2002
|''India''
|Segment of ''[[11'9"01 September 11]]'' 
|-
|2007
|''Migration..'' 
||Segment of ''AIDS Jaago''
|-
|2008
|''Kosher Vegetarian''
|Segment of ''[[New York, I Love You]]''
|-
|2008
|''How can it be?'' 
|Segment of ''[[8 (2008 film)|8]]'' 
|-
|2014
|''God Room'' 
|Segment of ''[[Words with Gods]]''
|-
|}

'''TV series'''
{| class="wikitable"
!Year
!Title
!Notes
|-
|2020
|''[[A Suitable Boy (series)|A Suitable Boy]]'' 
|5 episodes<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/mediacentre/latestnews/2019/a-suitable-boy-cast|title=BBC - Cast announced for BBC One's A Suitable Boy, the first screen adaptation of Vikram Seth's classic novel - Media Centre|publisher=BBC}}</ref>
|-
|2022
|''[[National Treasure: Edge of History]]'' 
| Episode "I'm a Ghost"
|-
|}

==Awards==
[[File:Mira Nair at ZIFF 2013.jpg|thumb|Nair at the [[Zanzibar International Film Festival]], 2013]]{{BLP sources section|date=June 2020}}
She was awarded the [[India Abroad]] Person of the Year-2007.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.rediff.com/news/2008/mar/29iapoy.htm |title=Mira Nair is India Abroad Person of the Year 2007 |date=29 March 2008 |work=[[Rediff.com]]}}</ref> In 2012 she was awarded India's third highest civilian award the [[Padma Bhushan]] by President of India, [[Pratibha Patil]].<ref>{{cite news |last=Jamkhandikar |first=Shilpa |date=25 January 2012 |title=Dharmendra, Shabana Azmi, Mira Nair to get Padma Bhushan |url=http://in.reuters.com/article/padma-bhushan-awards-idINDEE80O0IY20120125 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160305225207/http://in.reuters.com/article/padma-bhushan-awards-idINDEE80O0IY20120125 |url-status=dead |archive-date=5 March 2016 |work=Reuters}}</ref>

===Wins===
* 1988: Audience Award, [[Cannes Film Festival]]: ''[[Salaam Bombay!]]''
* 1988: [[Caméra d'Or|Golden Camera]] (Best First Film), Cannes Film Festival: ''Salaam Bombay!''
* 1988: [[National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Hindi]]: ''Salaam Bombay!''<ref>{{cite book|last=Taraporevala|first=Sooni|title=Salaam Bombay!|year=1989|publisher=Penguin Books|isbn=0-14-012724-0|author2=Mira Nair}}</ref>
* 1988: [[National Board of Review Awards 1988|National Board of Review Award]] for Top Foreign Films: ''Salaam Bombay!''
* 1988: "Jury Prize", "Most Popular Film" and "[[Prize of the Ecumenical Jury]]" at [[Montreal World Film Festival]]: ''Salaam Bombay!''
* 1988: New Generation Award, [[Los Angeles Film Critics Association Awards 1988|Los Angeles Film Critics Association Awards]]
* 1991: [[Golden Osella]] (Best Original Screenplay), [[Venice Film Festival]]: ''[[Mississippi Masala]]'' (with [[Sooni Taraporevala]])<ref>{{cite book|last=Sloan|first=Jane|title=Reel women|year=2007|publisher=Scarecrow Press|isbn=978-0-8108-5738-4}}</ref>
* 1991: Critics Special Award, [[São Paulo International Film Festival]]: ''Mississippi Masala''
* 1992: Best Director (Foreign Film), [[Nastro d'Argento|Italian National Syndicate of Film Journalists]]: ''Mississippi Masala''
* 2001: [[Golden Lion]] (Best Film), Venice Film Festival: ''[[Monsoon Wedding]]''
* 2001: Laterna Magica Prize, Venice Film Festival: ''Monsoon Wedding''
* 2002: Audience Award, [[Canberra International Film Festival]]: ''Monsoon Wedding''
* 2002: Special Award for International Cinema, [[Zee Cine Awards]]: ''Monsoon Wedding''
* 2002: UNESCO Award, Venice Film Festival: ''[[11'9"01 September 11]]''
* 2003: [[Provincetown International Film Festival|Faith Hubley Memorial Award]], [[Provincetown International Film Festival]]<ref>{{Cite web|last=McKeenmckee@capecodonline.com|first=Natalie|title=Connie White to step down as fest's artistic director|url=https://www.capecodtimes.com/entertainmentlife/20160612/connie-white-to-step-down-as-fests-artistic-director|access-date=2020-12-29|website=capecodtimes.com|language=en|archive-date=13 June 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210613132338/https://www.capecodtimes.com/entertainmentlife/20160612/connie-white-to-step-down-as-fests-artistic-director|url-status=dead}}</ref>
*2003: [[Arts First|Harvard Arts Medal]]<ref>{{cite web |title=History of the Harvard Arts Medal |url=https://ofa.fas.harvard.edu/harvard-arts-medal |publisher=Harvard University Office for the Arts |access-date=23 February 2019}}</ref>
* 2004: Faith Hubley Web of Life Award, [[Rochester-High Falls International Film Festival]]
* 2012: "[[IFFI Special Jury Award and Special Mention|IFFI Centenary Award]]" for ''[[The Reluctant Fundamentalist (film)|The Reluctant Fundamentalist]]''<ref>{{cite web|url=http://pib.nic.in/newsite/PrintRelease.aspx?relid=89798|title=43rd IFFI closes with Meera Nair's 'The Reluctant Fundamentalist'|website=pib.nic.in}}</ref>
* 2012: Padma Bhushan by Government of India<ref>{{cite web |date=27 January 2013 |title= Padma Awards Announced |url=http://www.pib.nic.in/newsite/erelease.aspx?relid=79881 |publisher=Press Information Bureau |access-date=27 January 2013}}</ref>

===Nominations===
* 1989: [[Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film]]: ''[[Salaam Bombay!]]''
* 1989: [[César Award for Best Foreign Film]] (''Meilleur film étranger''): ''[[Salaam Bombay!]]''
* 1989: [[Golden Globe Award for Best Foreign Language Film]]: ''[[Salaam Bombay!]]''
* 1990: [[BAFTA Award for Best Film Not in the English Language]]: ''[[Salaam Bombay!]]''
* 1990: [[Filmfare Best Director Award]]: ''[[Salaam Bombay!]]''
* 1990: [[Filmfare Best Movie Award]]: ''[[Salaam Bombay!]]''
* 1991: [[Golden Lion]] (Best Film), [[Venice Film Festival]]: ''[[Mississippi Masala]]''
* 1993: [[Independent Spirit Award]] for Best Feature: ''Mississippi Masala''
* 1996: Golden Seashell, [[San Sebastián International Film Festival]]: ''[[Kama Sutra: A Tale of Love]]''
* 1999: Best Film, Verzaubert International Gay & Lesbian Film Festival: ''[[My Own Country]]''
* 2001: Screen International Award (Best Non-European Film), [[European Film Awards]]: ''[[Monsoon Wedding]]''
* 2001: [[Golden Globe Award for Best Foreign Language Film]]: ''[[Monsoon Wedding]]''
* 2002: [[BAFTA Award for Best Film Not in the English Language]]: ''[[Monsoon Wedding]]''
* 2003: Golden Star, [[International Film Festival of Marrakech]]: ''[[Hysterical Blindness (film)|Hysterical Blindness]]''
* 2003: [[César Award for Best Film from the European Union]]: ''[[11'9"01 September 11]]''
* 2004: [[Golden Lion]] (Best Film), [[Venice Film Festival]]: ''[[Vanity Fair (2004 film)|Vanity Fair]]''
* 2007: [[Gotham Awards 2007|Gotham Award]] for Best Film: ''[[The Namesake (film)|The Namesake]]''

== See also ==
* [[Indians in the New York City metropolitan area]]

== References ==
{{reflist}}

==Further reading==
*Jigna Desai: ''[https://archive.org/details/beyondbollywoodc0000desa Beyond Bollywood: The cultural politics of South Asian diasporic film]''. New York: Routledge, 2004, 280 pp. ill. {{ISBN|0-415-96684-1}} (inb.) / {{ISBN|0-415-96685-X}} (hft.)
*Gita Rajan: ''Pliant and compliant: colonial Indian art and postcolonial cinema''. ''Women''. Oxford (Print), ISSN 0957-4042; 13(2002):1, pp.&nbsp;48&ndash;69.
*Alpana Sharma: ''Body matters: the politics of provocation in Mira Nair's films''. ''QRFV : Quarterly review of film and video'', ISSN 1050-9208; 18(2001):1, pp.&nbsp;91&ndash;103.
*Pratibha Parmar: ''Mira Nair: filmmaking in the streets of Bombay''. ''Spare rib'', ISSN 0306-7971; 198, 1989, pp.&nbsp;28&ndash;29.
*Gwendolyn Audrey Foster: ''[https://archive.org/details/womenfilmmakerso0000fost Women Filmmakers of the African and Asian Diaspora: Decolonizing the Gaze, Locating Subjectivity]''. Carbondale, Ill. : Southern Illinois University Press, 1997. {{ISBN|0-8093-2120-3}}
* John Kenneth Muir: ''[https://books.google.com/books?id=HEte5ilhCTcC Mercy in Her Eyes: The Films of Mira Nair]''. Hal Leonard, 2006. {{ISBN|1-55783-649-3}}, {{ISBN|978-1-55783-649-6}}.

==External links==
{{Commons category|Mira Nair}}
* {{IMDb name}}

{{Mira Nair}}
{{IFFI Silver Peacock - Special Jury Award and Special Mention|state=collapsed}}
{{PadmaBhushanAwardRecipients 2010–19}}
{{Berlin International Film Festival jury presidents}}
{{Authority control}}

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[[Category:1957 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:People from Rourkela]]
[[Category:Activists from Odisha]]
[[Category:Artists from Bhubaneswar]]
[[Category:American activists for Palestinian solidarity]]
[[Category:American anti-Zionists]]

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[[Category:Film directors from New York City]]
[[Category:20th-century Indian people]]
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[[Category:English-language film directors]]

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[[Category:Directors of Caméra d'Or winners]]
[[Category:Directors of Golden Lion winners]]
[[Category:Golden Globe Award winners]]
[[Category:Recipients of the Padma Bhushan in arts]]

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[[Category:Columbia University faculty]]
[[Category:Harvard University alumni]]

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[[Category:American women film directors]]
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[[Category:20th-century Indian women artists]]
[[Category:21st-century Indian women artists]]

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[[Category:Indian emigrants to the United States]]
[[Category:American film directors of Indian descent]]
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