Acclaimed Indian filmmaker Mira Nair turned down the opportunity to direct Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire on the advice of her then 14-year-old son, Zohran Mamdani.
At the 2018 Jaipur Literature Festival session, the Oscar-nominated director recalled how Warner Brothers approached her to helm Harry Potter 4, a major blockbuster opportunity. At the time, she was focused on bringing Jhumpa Lahiri's novel The Namesake to life. Struggling with the choice, she turned to her teen son for guidance.
“Mama, many good directors can make Harry Potter, but only you can make The Namesake,” he told her.
Mira Nair described the moment as “liberating and clarifying.”
“It was such a liberating and clarifying statement, and it kind of is about how I have lived my life. You know, like, what can I do that is so specific that you cannot do? How to make my distinctiveness my calling card in a sense, how to trust my own instinct, because really, instinct is the only thing that is particular to each one of us and that defines me, or you, or anyone else you see,” Mira Nair said.
The Namesake went on to receive significant critical acclaim. The 2006 film tells the story of a Bengali immigrant family in the US, exploring themes of identity, family, and loss.
Starring Kal Penn, Tabu, and the late Irrfan Khan, the film was celebrated for its sensitive portrayal of the immigrant experience and the universal struggle of belonging.
The Namesake premiered at the New York Film Festival and was also shown at festivals in Toronto, London, and Telluride. The film was widely praised, won the Golden Aphrodite at the Love is Folly International Film Festival, was listed in the National Board of Review's Top Independent Films of 2007, and received several other nominations.
Fast forward to 2025, Zohran Mamdani has carved his own path, becoming New York City's 111th mayor and the first Muslim to lead the city.
On Tuesday, Mira Nair celebrated her son's historic win by resharing director Zoya Akhtar's Instagram story praising him with the caption “Zohran you beauty” and heart and fireworks emojis.
She also drew a parallel between her 1988 Cannes experience and her son's win. Back then, her mother introduced herself to paparazzi as “the producer of the director” at the Salaam Bombay! screening. Now, in an interview with Vogue India, Nair humorously called herself “the producer of the candidate” after Mamdani's election.
