''Mississippi Masala'' is a 1991
romantic drama film
In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super ...
directed by
Mira Nair
Mira Nair (born 15 October 1957) 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 spher ...
, based upon a screenplay by
Sooni Taraporevala, starring
Denzel Washington,
Sarita Choudhury, and
Roshan Seth
Roshan Seth (born 2 April 1942) is a British-Indian actor, writer and theatre director who has worked in the United Kingdom, United States and India. He began his acting career in the early 1960s in the UK, but left acting the following decade ...
. Set primarily in rural
Mississippi
Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Miss ...
, the film explores interracial romance between
African American
African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...
s and
Indian Americans.
It was released in France on 18 September 1991, in the United Kingdom on 17 January 1992 and in the U.S. on 5 February 1992. The film grossed $7,332,515
USD
The United States dollar (symbol: $; code: USD; also abbreviated US$ or U.S. Dollar, to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies; referred to as the dollar, U.S. dollar, American dollar, or colloquially buck) is the official ...
at the box office. The film was made a part of
The Criterion Collection
The Criterion Collection, Inc. (or simply Criterion) is an American home video, home-video distribution company that focuses on licensing, restoring and distributing "important classic and contemporary films." Criterion serves film and media scho ...
on May 24, 2022.
Plot
In 1972, dictator
Idi Amin
Idi Amin Dada Oumee (, ; 16 August 2003) was a Ugandan military officer and politician who served as the third president of Uganda from 1971 to 1979. He ruled as a military dictator and is considered one of the most brutal despots in modern w ...
enacts a policy of forceful
expulsion of Asians from Uganda
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 of the expulsion, there were about 80,000 individuals of Indian descent in Ugand ...
. Jay, his wife Kinnu, and their daughter Mina, a family of
Ugandan Indians residing in
Kampala
Kampala (, ) is the capital and largest city of Uganda. The city proper has a population of 1,680,000 and is divided into the five political divisions of Kampala Central Division, Kawempe Division, Makindye Division, Nakawa Division, and Ruba ...
, reluctantly and tearfully leave their home behind and relocate. After spending a few years in England, the family settle in
Greenwood, Mississippi
Greenwood is a city in and the county seat of Leflore County, Mississippi, United States, located at the eastern edge of the Mississippi Delta region, approximately 96 miles north of the state capital, Jackson, and 130 miles south of the riverp ...
to live with family members who own a chain of motels there. Despite the passage of time, Jay is unable to come to terms with his sudden departure from his home country, and cannot fully embrace the American lifestyle. He dreams of one day returning with his family to Kampala. The effects of Amin's dictatorship have caused Jay to become distrustful towards black people.
Mina, on the other hand, has fully assimilated to the American culture and has a diverse group of friends. She feels stifled by her parents' wish to only associate with members of their own community. She falls in love with Demetrius, a local
African American
African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...
self-employed carpet cleaner. Mina is aware that her parents will not approve and keeps the relationship somewhat secret. The pair decide to spend a romantic clandestine weekend together in
Biloxi
Biloxi ( ; ) is a city in and one of two county seats of Harrison County, Mississippi, United States (the other being the adjacent city of Gulfport). The 2010 United States Census recorded the population as 44,054 and in 2019 the estimated popu ...
, where they are spotted by members of the Indian community, and the gossip begins to spread. Jay is outraged and ashamed, and forbids Mina from ever seeing Demetrius again. Mina also faces both subtle and outright dislike from Demetrius' community. Demetrius confronts Jay, who reveals his experiences and racist treatment in Uganda, causing Demetrius to call out Jay on his hypocrisy. Ultimately, the two families cannot fully come to terms with the interracial pair, who flee the state together in Demetrius's van.
Jay's wish finally becomes reality when he travels to Kampala to attend a court proceeding on the disposition of his previously confiscated house. While in the country however, he sees how much it has changed and realises that he no longer identifies with the land of his birth. Jay returns to America and relinquishes his long-nurtured dream of returning to Uganda, the place he considered home.
Cast
Production
The script was written in Brooklyn, New York, after research by Nair, Taraporevala, and their team in Mississippi and Kampala. While doing research in Mississippi, Nair met a carpet cleaner named Demetrius and decided to model the main character after him.
Ben Kingsley
Sir Ben Kingsley (born Krishna Pandit Bhanji; 31 December 1943) is an English actor. He has received various accolades throughout his career spanning five decades, including an Academy Award, a British Academy Film Award, a Grammy Award, and tw ...
was originally cast in the role of Mina's father, but he eventually withdrew from the project, prompting the original backers of the film to pull out. Nair was able to gain new funding after Denzel Washington was chosen for the role of Demetrius. She later mentioned she faced substantial pressure from potential backers to select white leads rather than Indians or African Americans.
[ The Mississippi-based scenes were filmed in Mississippi, in the towns of Greenwood, Grenada, ]Biloxi
Biloxi ( ; ) is a city in and one of two county seats of Harrison County, Mississippi, United States (the other being the adjacent city of Gulfport). The 2010 United States Census recorded the population as 44,054 and in 2019 the estimated popu ...
, and Ocean Springs
Ocean Springs is a city in Jackson County, Mississippi, United States, approximately east of Biloxi and west of Gautier. It is part of the Pascagoula, Mississippi Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 17,225 at the 2000 U.S. Census ...
. The Uganda scenes were filmed in Kampala, Uganda
Kampala (, ) is the capital and largest city of Uganda. The city proper has a population of 1,680,000 and is divided into the five political divisions of Kampala Central Division, Kawempe Division, Makindye Division, Nakawa Division, and Ruba ...
, including in Nair's home. Though the Monte Cristo motel was an existing business chosen by Nair and production designer Mitch Epstein
Mitchell Epstein (born 1952) is an American fine-art photographer, among the first to make significant use of color. His books include ''Property Rights'' (2021), ''In India'' (2021), ''Sunshine Hotel'' (2019), ''Rocks and Clouds'' (2018), ''Ne ...
for shooting, the production crew added a dark green trim to the exterior to echo the verdant landscape of Uganda.
Reception
The film was positively received by critics. It received a 92% fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...
from 73 reviews with the consensus: "Sarita Choudhury and Denzel Washington’s romantic chemistry lights up the screen in ''Mississippi Masala'', Mira Nair’s observant and sexy tale of cultures clashing."
Awards and honors
* 1993 NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Motion Picture – Denzel Washington
* 1991 São Paulo International Film Festival
The São Paulo International Film Festival ( pt, Mostra Internacional de Cinema de São Paulo), also known internationally as Mostra, is an annual film festival held in the city of São Paulo, Brazil. A non-profit event, the festival is organized ...
– Mira Nair, Critics Special Award
* 1991 48th Venice International Film Festival
The 48th annual Venice International Film Festival was held on 3 to 14 September 1991.
Jury
The following people comprised the 1991 jury:
* Gian Luigi Rondi head of jury
* Silvia D'Amico Bendico
*James Belushi
*John Boorman
*Michel Ciment
*Morit ...
– Golden Osella Best Original Screenplay – Sooni Taraporevala; Golden Ciak/Best Film – Mira Nair
The film is recognized by American Film Institute in these lists:
* 2002: AFI's 100 Years...100 Passions – Nominated
Home media
On May 24, 2022, The Criterion Collection released ''Mississippi Masala'' in a newly restored 4K edition on Blu-ray and DVD. The special edition includes new interviews from Nair, Taraporevala, production designer and photographer Mitch Epstein
Mitchell Epstein (born 1952) is an American fine-art photographer, among the first to make significant use of color. His books include ''Property Rights'' (2021), ''In India'' (2021), ''Sunshine Hotel'' (2019), ''Rocks and Clouds'' (2018), ''Ne ...
, and cinematographer Edward Lachman.
References
External links
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*
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''Mississippi Masala:'' The Ocean of Comings and Goings
an essay by Bilal Qureshi at the Criterion Collection
Official trailer
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mississippi Masala
1991 films
1991 romantic drama films
1991 independent films
American romantic drama films
Indian-American films
British Indian films
1990s English-language films
Films about Indian weddings
Films about interracial romance
Films about racism
Films about weddings
1990s American films
Films about women in the Indian diaspora
Films set in Mississippi
Films shot in Mississippi
Films shot in Uganda
Films set in Uganda
Films directed by Mira Nair
Films produced by Michael Nozik
Films set in 1972
Films set in 1990
The Samuel Goldwyn Company films
African-American films
Cultural depictions of Idi Amin
Films about forced migration
Films with screenplays by Sooni Taraporevala
Mirabai Films films
Films scored by L. Subramaniam