If you wish to watch cinema that bridges the gap between India and the West, Mira Nair is one of the most prominent names that come to mind. After her breakout debut Salaam Bombay picked up nominations for Best Foreign Film at the Oscars, Golden Globes, and BAFTAs, the director continued a streak of cross-cultural films that delved into the economic, social and cultural aspects of Indians across different classes (and in many cases Indians living abroad).
From working with a pre-fame Denzel Washington in Mississippi Masala to adapting Jhumpa Lahiri’s Booker Prize-winning book The Namesake for a movie of the same name, Nair’s filmography makes for a diverse binge. Here’s a closer look at her best movies and where to watch them.
Early success with Salaam Bombay
With her recurring collaborator Sooni Taraporewala penning the screenplay, Mira Nair marked her directorial debut with the 1998 classic Salaam Bombay. Relying on an ensemble of largely non-actors playing homeless children on the street, Nair’s debut drama delved into the tumultuous lives of slum-dwellers in the titular city.
The movie proved to be one of the biggest Indian successes at Western awards like Golden Globes and Oscars (one of the only three Indian movies to be nominated for Best International Feature) but back home, contemporary Indians have mixed feelings about Salaam Bombay. On one hand, it is an empathetic story with good intentions but on the other, it seems to fetishise urban Indian poverty in the same vein as polarising movies like Slumdog Millionaire. Regardless of its divided analysis, Salaam Bombay proved Nair’s directing prowess and set out a roadmap for many other genre efforts.
India meets West: From Monsoon Wedding to Mississippi Masala
If one is to watch Nair’s post-Salaam Bombay movies, a recurring theme to find is the feeling of displacement among Indians. Monsoon Wedding, while shot in the midst of a Hindu arranged marriage in India, finds the bridegroom as an NRI (Non Residential Indian) from the US. As he explores his homeland, his cultural confusion is more than evident.
The reverse is the situation in Mississippi Masala, a romantic comedy dealing with interracial romances between African Americans and Indian Americans. The pairing of Denzel Washington and Sarita Choudhury gets the message straight and prophesied the advent of subsequently iconic cross-cultural romances like The Big Sick and You People.
Mira Nair’s non-Indian projects: Queen of Katwe, Vanity Fair and more
Following the same route as other Indian-origin directors like Shekhar Kapur and Gurinder Chaddha, Nair established herself further with projects that involved non-Indian actors in non-Indian settings. The first time she did so was with The Perez Family, a comedy about Cuban refugees pretending to be a family in America. Then, there’s Vanity Fair that presents Nair’s reinterpretation of William Makepeace Thackeray’s novel of the same name.
Some more iconic Nair movies to stream include Amelia (on American aviator Amelia Earhart), Queen of Katwe (on Ugandan chess prodigy Phiona Mutesi) and The Reluctant Fundamentalist that delves into the racial struggles of post-9/11 America from the perspective of a Pakistani man, played to perfection by Riz Ahmed.
Why is The Namesake Mira Nair’s best movie?
Based on the iconic novel of the same name, The Namesake perfectly captures the alienation that defines most of Nair’s protagonists. An inter-generational story between an Indian immigrant father and his Americanised son is brought to life with emotional dialogues, vivid imagery, and Nitin Sahwney’s soul-stirring score. Serving justice to Jhumpa Lahiri’s source material, The Namesake is still bound to be relatable to many brown immigrants.
Where can you stream Mira Nair’s filmography?
You can watch some of Nair’s movies by renting them on Amazon or streaming on Hotstar. You can also watch her TV series A Suitable Boy on Netflix.
