Mira Nair Quotes

A collection of quotes by Mira Nair.

Mira Nair is an acclaimed Indian-American filmmaker, born on October 15, 1957, in Rourkela, Odisha, India. She is best known for her thought-provoking films that explore themes of identity, cultural clash, and social issues. Nair grew up in Delhi and later studied at Delhi University and Harvard University. Her passion for storytelling and visual art led her to pursue a career in filmmaking.

Nair gained international recognition with her debut feature film "Salaam Bombay!" (1988), which received critical acclaim and was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film. Over the years, she has directed numerous well-received films, including "Mississippi Masala" (1991), "Monsoon Wedding" (2001), and "The Namesake" (2006), which reflected her own experiences as an Indian living abroad.

Apart from her feature films, Nair has also directed several documentaries and TV series, showcasing her versatility as a filmmaker. Her work often portrays the complexities of human relationships and the intersection of cultures in a globalized world.

In recognition of her contributions to cinema, Nair has received numerous awards and honors, including the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival and the Padma Bhushan, India's third-highest civilian award. She continues to be an influential figure in the world of filmmaking, using her art to highlight important social issues and bridge cultural gaps.

You know, the sad thing of post-9/11, which was of course ho

You know, the sad thing of post-9/11, which was of course horrific, was that the city in which I felt completely at home for two decades, suddenly people like us - brown people - were looked at as the 'Others.'

My family is almost exactly like the one in 'Monsoon Wedding

My family is almost exactly like the one in 'Monsoon Wedding'. We are very open, fairly liberal, loud people.

Truth is more peculiar than fiction. Life is really a startl

Truth is more peculiar than fiction. Life is really a startling place.

Life Truth Places

We have to realize only in communication, in real knowledge,

We have to realize only in communication, in real knowledge, in real reaching out, can there be an understanding that there's humanity everywhere, and that's what I'm trying to do.

Communication

Marriage of attraction is a gamble anyway, so you might as w

Marriage of attraction is a gamble anyway, so you might as well marry into a family that is similar to your own, and make that much less of an adjustment. But the 'love marriage', as it is called, is equally common in India now. But it would be interesting to do a comparison of what would work better. Marriage is hard work, and it is a gamble.

Marriage

We have three generations at home, including my father-in-la

We have three generations at home, including my father-in-law. I keep a very low profile, and a lot of things I do are very much with the family in mind. I have actually made films with the family around me.

Home

Creative freedom is an imperative for me, but it doesn't rea

Creative freedom is an imperative for me, but it doesn't really exist in a Hollywood game.

Freedom

It's only at this age that I can say the word 'art' without

It's only at this age that I can say the word 'art' without flinching.

Age

With Vietnam, the Iraq War, so many American films about war

With Vietnam, the Iraq War, so many American films about war are almost always from the American point of view. You almost never have a Middle Eastern character by name with a story.

War

I often begin movies with music in my head it's a very impor

I often begin movies with music in my head it's a very important dimension to me. Not just the music itself, but how to use music in film: when and how and subtlety. I don't like to be too sweet in my stories, and I like the abrasive clang, the contrasting of sounds and cultures.

Movies

Christmas lights may be the loneliest thing for me, especial

Christmas lights may be the loneliest thing for me, especially if you mix them up with reindeers and sleighs. I feel alone. I feel isolated. I feel I do not belong.

Alone

I am at home in many cultures. I live actively in three cont

I am at home in many cultures. I live actively in three continents and I've done that for most of my life, so I just make films as I see the world, and that happens to speak to people. I do things that I want to do.

Home

New York City is home to so many people from so many places

New York City is home to so many people from so many places and the uniqueness of it is that you never feel a foreigner. English is almost hardly ever heard in the subway. In fact, it's weird.

Home

I think films have to reach people and really grab them. Tha

I think films have to reach people and really grab them. That's what I hope to do when I make a film - to get under your skin and really make you think about something, and have a transporting time that takes you somewhere.

Hope

It gave me a lot of pleasure and pride that 90 percent of th

It gave me a lot of pleasure and pride that 90 percent of the crew for 'Monsoon Wedding,' and most of my film, are women. We get the work done, you know, much lesser play of ego... And I really believe in harmony, I believe in working in a spirit of egolessness and that the film is bigger than all of us.

Wedding

In America, we have so many movies and so much media about t

In America, we have so many movies and so much media about the Islamic world, the sub-continental world, but it's not a conversation, it's a monologue. It's always from one point of view. 'If we don't tell our own stories, no one will tell them' is my mantra.

Movies

I look for the humanity in people, however big the politics

I look for the humanity in people, however big the politics or oppressive the situation may be, whether it's subsumed within a human being or between two human beings. I want to help us hold a mirror to ourselves.

Politics