Mira Nair is an Indian-American filmmaker based in New York City. Her production company, Mirabai Films, specializes in films for international audiences on Indian society, whether in the economic, social or cultural spheres. Among her best known films are Mississippi Masala, The Namesake, the Golden Lion–winning Monsoon Wedding, and Salaam Bombay!, which received nominations for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film and the BAFTA Award for Best Film Not in the English Language.
Denzel Hayes Washington Jr. is an American actor, producer, and director. In a career spanning over four decades, Washington has received numerous accolades, including a Tony Award, two Academy Awards, three Golden Globe Awards and two Silver Bears. He was honored with the Cecil B. DeMille Lifetime Achievement Award in 2016, the AFI Life Achievement Award in 2019, and in 2020 The New York Times named him the greatest actor of the 21st century. In 2022, Washington received the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
Demetrius is the Latinized form of the Ancient Greek male given name Dēmḗtrios (Δημήτριος), meaning “Demetris” - "devoted to goddess Demeter". Alternate forms include Demetrios, Dimitrios, Dimitris, Dmytro, Dimitri, Dimitrie, Dimitar, Dumitru, Demitri, Dhimitër, and Dimitrije, in addition to other forms descended from it. Nicknames include Demmie, Dimmie, Demi, Jim, Jimmy, Jimmie, Metry, Metrie, Mimmie, Demetri, Dimitri, Mitică and Dima.
Subramaniam Lakshminarayana is an Indian violinist, composer and conductor, trained in the classical Carnatic music tradition and Western classical music.
Kama Sutra: A Tale of Love is a 1996 Indian historical erotic romance film co-written, co-produced, and directed by Mira Nair. The first portion of the film is based on "Utran", a short story in Urdu by the Indian writer Wajida Tabassum. The film takes its title from the ancient Indian text, the Kama Sutra. It stars Naveen Andrews, Sarita Choudhury, Ramon Tikaram, Rekha, and Indira Varma. The English-language film was produced by Indian, British, German and Japanese studios.
Sooni Taraporevala is an Indian screenwriter, photographer, and filmmaker who is the screenwriter of Mississippi Masala, The Namesake and Oscar-nominated Salaam Bombay!, all directed by Mira Nair. She also adapted Rohinton Mistry's novel Such A Long Journey and wrote the films Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar, her directorial debut Little Zizou, and Yeh Ballet, a Netflix original film that she wrote and directed.
Sarita Catherine Louise Choudhury is a British actress. She made her screen debut starring in the romantic drama film Mississippi Masala (1991). She later appeared in American and international film productions, include A Perfect Murder (1998), Restless (1998), She Hate Me (2004), The War Within (2005), Lady in the Water (2006), Midnight's Children (2012), The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1 (2014) and The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2 (2015), A Hologram for the King (2016), and The Green Knight (2021).
Salaam Bombay! is a 1988 Indian Hindi-language drama film, directed, co-written and co-produced by Mira Nair. The screenwriter was Nair's creative collaborator Sooni Taraporevala. This was the first feature film directed by Nair. The film depicts the daily lives of children living in slums in Bombay, India's largest city. It stars Shafiq Syed, Raghuvir Yadav, Anita Kanwar, Nana Patekar, Hansa Vithal and Chanda Sharma.
The Namesake is a 2006 English-language drama film directed by Mira Nair and written by Sooni Taraporevala based on the novel The Namesake by Jhumpa Lahiri. It stars Kal Penn, Tabu, Irrfan Khan and Sahira Nair. The film was produced by Indian, American and Japanese studios. The film was released in the United States on 9 March 2007, following screenings at film festivals in Toronto and New York City. The Namesake received positive reviews from American critics.
Mitchell Epstein is an American photographer. His books include Vietnam: A Book of Changes (1997); Family Business (2003), which won the 2004 Kraszna-Krausz Photography Book Award; Recreation: American Photographs 1973–1988 (2005); Mitch Epstein: Work (2006); American Power (2009); Berlin (2011); New York Arbor (2013); Rocks and Clouds (2018); Sunshine Hotel (2019); In India (2021); and Property Rights (2021).
In early August 1972, the President of Uganda Idi Amin ordered the expulsion of his country's Indian minority, giving them 90 days to leave the country. At the time, South Asians in East Africa were simply known as "Asians". They had come to dominate trade under British colonial policies.
Joseph Ogola Olita was a Kenyan actor who was best known for portraying Idi Amin in Rise and Fall of Idi Amin (1981) and Mississippi Masala (1991).
Cinecom Pictures was an independent film company founded in 1982 by Ira Deutchman, Amir Malin and John Ives. Its first release was Robert Altman's Come Back to the Five and Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean.
Imaaduddin Shah is an Indian actor and musician. He is the son of actors Naseeruddin Shah and Ratna Pathak Shah.
Dr. Aanjjan Srivastav is an Indian film, television and stage actor, associated with Indian People's Theatre Association (IPTA) in Mumbai of which he remained Vice-President for several years. Outside theatre, he is best known as a character actor in Marathi and Hindi films, most notably, Mira Nair's Salaam Bombay!, Mississippi Masala and Anupam Mittal's Flavors and Bollywood films like Gol Maal, Bemisal, Khuda Gawah, Kabhi Haan Kabhi Naa and Pukar. He has also acted in the TV shows Wagle Ki Duniya (1988) and Wagle Ki Duniya – Nayi Peedhi Naye Kissey (2021).
Tico Wells is an American actor, known for his role as Choir Boy in the 1991 film The Five Heartbeats. He has also appeared on The Cosby Show, 227, Hallmark movies and Beverly Hills, 90210. He was Tim in the movie The Wish List, and played Dexter Williams, the younger brother of Denzel Washington's character Demetrius Williams, in Mississippi Masala. He starred as Kirkland J. Ellis, III, in the independent film Big Ain't Bad, a romantic drama that won Auds honors at the Hollywood Black Film Festival. He made a cameo in the Martin Lawrence show, Martin as "Sweet Reggie."
The 48th annual Venice International Film Festival was held on 3 to 14 September 1991.
Mahmood Mamdani, FBA is an Indian-born Ugandan academic, author, and political commentator. He currently serves as the Chancellor of Kampala International University, Uganda. He was the director of the Makerere Institute of Social Research (MISR) from 2010 until February 2022, the Herbert Lehman Professor of Government at the School of International and Public Affairs, Columbia University and the Professor of Anthropology, Political Science and African Studies at Columbia University.
Viji Subramaniam, also known as Viji Shankar, was an Indian singer. She was the daughter of singer Lakshmi Shankar and Rajendra Shankar. Like her mother and uncle, Viji was a musician and trained in both the Indian classical systems.
Michael Wawuyo Sr is a Ugandan actor and special effects artist. He is notable for his big screen roles on Last King of Scotland, Kony: Order from Above, The Only Son, Sometimes in April, The Mercy of the Jungle and small screen roles on NTV's Yat Madit and Power of Legacy.
