Namrata Singh Gujral (born February 26, 1976) is an American filmmaker, motivational speaker and actor.
Life and career
Gujral was born in
Dharamshala
Dharamshala (; also spelled Dharamsala) is the winter capital of Himachal Pradesh, India. It serves as administrative headquarters of the Kangra district after being relocated from Kangra, a city located away from Dharamshala, in 1855.
The ...
,
Himachal Pradesh
Himachal Pradesh (; ; "Snow-laden Mountain Province") is a state in the northern part of India. Situated in the Western Himalayas, it is one of the thirteen mountain states and is characterized by an extreme landscape featuring several peaks ...
, but left India at a young age. A devout
Sikh by faith, she graduated in 1998 from the
University of West Florida
The University of West Florida (West Florida or UWF) is a public university in Pensacola, Florida. Established in 1963 as part of the State University System of Florida, the university sits on the third largest campus in the State University Sys ...
. She is a film producer, director and motivational speaker. She is also a former actress.
Gujral also serves as President of
Uniglobe Entertainment, a Hollywood based studio, which focuses on socially relevant international projects for the North American market.
Gujral is a
breast cancer
Breast cancer is cancer that develops from breast tissue. Signs of breast cancer may include a lump in the breast, a change in breast shape, dimpling of the skin, milk rejection, fluid coming from the nipple, a newly inverted nipple, or a r ...
survivor and
blood cancer
Tumors of the hematopoietic and lymphoid tissues (American English) or tumours of the haematopoietic and lymphoid tissues (British English) are tumors that affect the blood, bone marrow, lymph, and lymphatic system. Because these tissues are all ...
survivor. She attributes her medical journey to the dramatic shift in her life – a shift that has led her to choose entertainment projects that carry strong humanitarian angles.
Gujral is currently shooting
Finding Match, a docu-drama on blood cancer, that traces the journey of humans from pre-historic times and the genetic changes that occurred, which make various ethnic groups more likely to find stem cell matches within their own communities.
Gujral is also wrapping production on
America's Forgotten 2 – a sequel to ‘America’s Forgotten’, a docu-drama on the American immigration system, which was shot in several countries.
Newsweek
''Newsweek'' is an American weekly online news magazine co-owned 50 percent each by Dev Pragad, its president and CEO, and Johnathan Davis, who has no operational role at ''Newsweek''. Founded as a weekly print magazine in 1933, it was widely ...
released the trailer.
Gujral’s recent venture
5 Weddings, a Hollywood-Bollywood rom-com, features international stars
Nargis Fakhri
Nargis Fakhri (born October 20, 1979) is an American actress and model who primarily works in the Indian Hindi-language films. Her first role in film came with the 2011 romantic drama ''Rockstar'', for which she was nominated for Filmfare Award ...
(Bollywood Blockbuster ''
Rockstar
Rock Star or Rockstar may refer to:
Films
* ''Rock Star'' (2001 film), an American film starring Mark Wahlberg
* ''Rockstar'' (2011 film), an Indian Hindi-language film by Imtiaz Ali
* ''Rockstar'' (2015 film), an Indian Malayalam-language fi ...
''),
Rajkummar Rao
Rajkummar Rao (born Raj Kumar Yadav; 31 August 1984) is an Indian actor known for his work in Hindi films. He has appeared in more than 30 films since 2010, and is the recipient of several accolades including a National Film Award, three ...
(Bollywood Blockbuster ''
Stree''),
Oscars
The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...
nominee
Candy Clark (
American Graffiti
''American Graffiti'' is a 1973 American coming-of-age comedy-drama film directed by George Lucas, produced by Francis Ford Coppola, written by Willard Huyck, Gloria Katz and Lucas, and starring Richard Dreyfuss, Ron Howard (billed as Ronny ...
) and
Golden Globes
The Golden Globe Awards are accolades bestowed by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association beginning in January 1944, recognizing excellence in both American and international film and television. Beginning in 2022, there are 105 members of ...
nominee
Bo Derek
Bo Derek (born Mary Cathleen Collins, November 20, 1956) is an American actress and model. Her breakthrough film role was in the romantic comedy '' 10'' (1979). Her first husband John Derek directed her in '' Fantasies''; '' Tarzan, the Ape Man ...
(
10). Film opened theatrically in 54 countries this past October. Film delves into the lives of
Hijras, a group of transgender dancers at Indian weddings, who are socially ostracized.
Lifetime TV
Lifetime is an American basic cable channel that is part of Lifetime Entertainment Services, a subsidiary of A&E Networks, which is jointly owned by Hearst Communications and The Walt Disney Company. It features programming that is geared toward ...
honored Gujral as one of their “Remarkable Women” making her the first Indian-American to join the ranks of other notables such as
Michelle Obama and
Hillary Clinton
Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, diplomat, and former lawyer who served as the 67th United States Secretary of State for President Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, as a United States sen ...
. The honor was awarded for WB’s
1 a Minute starring
Olivia Newton-John
Dame Olivia Newton-John (26 September 1948 – 8 August 2022) was a British-Australian singer, actress and activist. She was a four-time Grammy Award winner whose music career included 15 top-ten singles, including 5 number-one singles on the ...
,
Melissa Etheridge
Melissa Lou Etheridge (born May 29, 1961) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and guitarist. Her eponymous debut album was released in 1988 and became an underground success. It peaked at No. 22 on the ''Billboard'' 200 and its lead ...
,
Deepak Chopra,
Lisa Ray
Lisa Rani Ray (born 4 April 1972) is a Canadian actress and model who has also worked internationally. Ray began her modelling career in India in the early 1990s, appearing for leading Indian brands like Bombay Dyeing and Lakmé. She made her ...
,
Mumtaz
Mumtaz ( ar, ممتاز) is a name commonly used in various countries in the Muslim world, mainly Afghanistan, Brunei, Malaysia, Pakistan, Bangladesh, India and Turkey. It can also be used as a female name. ''Mumtazah'' is a related female versio ...
,
Jaclyn Smith
Jacquelyn Ellen "Jaclyn" Smith (born October 26, 1945) is an American actress and businesswoman. She is best known for her role as Kelly Garrett in the television series '' Charlie's Angels'' (1976–1981), and was the only original female lead ...
,
Barbara Mori
Barbara may refer to:
People
* Barbara (given name)
* Barbara (painter) (1915–2002), pseudonym of Olga Biglieri, Italian futurist painter
* Barbara (singer) (1930–1997), French singer
* Barbara Popović (born 2000), also known mononymously as ...
and
Billy Baldwin.
Gujral’s first production
Americanizing Shelley
''Americanizing Shelley'' is a 2007 Hollywood romantic comedy film directed by Lorraine Senna and starring Beau Bridges, Namrata Singh Gujral, Shaheen Khan, Wil Wheaton, Noureen DeWulf, Tony Yalda, and Ajay Mehta. The film was the closing film of ...
starring
Beau Bridges and
Wil Wheaton
Richard William Wheaton III (born July 29, 1972) is an American actor. He portrayed Wesley Crusher on the television series '' Star Trek: The Next Generation'', Gordie Lachance in the film '' Stand by Me'', Joey Trotta in '' Toy Soldiers'', ...
was released theatrically in 24 countries with
Warner Bros
Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California, and a subsidiary of Warner Bros. D ...
. Film posted higher box office averages than Angelina Jolie’s ‘Changeling’ and Brad Pitt’s ‘The Curious Life of Benjamin Button’ in various territories including Dubai and South Africa.
Gujral also recently directed
American Dream, a film starring
Satya Bhabha (Deepa Mehta’s
Midnight’s Children), Alex Veadov (
Act Of Valor
''Act of Valor'' is a 2012 American action film produced and directed by Mike McCoy and Scott Waugh, and written by Kurt Johnstad. Starring Alex Veadov, Roselyn Sánchez, Nestor Serrano and Emilio Rivera, as well as active duty U.S. Navy SEAL ...
) and Omi Vaidya (Bollywood Blockbuster
3 Idiots
''3 Idiots'' (stylized as ''3 idiots'') is a 2009 Indian Hindi-language coming-of-age comedy-drama film written, edited and directed by Rajkumar Hirani, co-written by Abhijat Joshi and produced by Vidhu Vinod Chopra. Adapted loosely from Ch ...
). The film covered the challenges faced by new immigrants from the third world who migrate to developed countries.
Gujral’s upcoming projects include
STILL
A still is an apparatus used to distill liquid mixtures by heating to selectively boil and then cooling to condense the vapor. A still uses the same concepts as a basic distillation apparatus, but on a much larger scale. Stills have been use ...
(a sci-fi feature), currently in casting and
Tie That Binds (a war based drama), currently in scripting which focuses on an international NATO mission in the Middle East.
Gujral has been recognized widely for her creative and commercial expertise on co-productions between Hollywood and Bollywood. She often lends her opinions at major networks like CNN, Fox and Times of India. Gujral has spoken on Hollywood-Bollywood co-productions at Stanford University, Nashville Film Fest, Melbourne Film Festival, Connecticut Film Fest and more.
Gujral was the first
Indian-American
Indian Americans or Indo-Americans are citizens of the United States with ancestry from India. The United States Census Bureau uses the term Asian Indian to avoid confusion with Native Americans, who have also historically been referred to ...
invited by the late Bollywood stalwart
Yash Chopra
Yash Raj Chopra (27 September 1932 21 October 2012) was an Indian film director and film producer who worked in Hindi cinema. The founding chairman of the film production and distribution company Yash Raj Films, Chopra was the recipient of ...
(Founder,
Yash Raj Films
Yash Raj Films (YRF) is an Indian film production and distribution company founded by veteran filmmaker Yash Chopra in 1970. It mainly produces and distributes Hindi and Punjabi films. The company has grown to be one of the largest film studios ...
) to speak on the dynamics of global co-productions at
FICCI
The Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry (FICCI) is a non-governmental trade association and advocacy group based in India.
History
Established in 1927, on the advice of Mahatma Gandhi by Indian businessman G.D. Birla an ...
, India’s highly prestigious entertainment conference, held annually in Mumbai. Gujral has also served as Juror at film festivals and several Miss India-America pageants.
As part of a give back to the world cancer community, Gujral launched
The Thrive Channel in June 2017. TTC is a media brand devoted to cancer survivors. Gujral developed the shows Destination Survival, Ultimate Survivor and Thrive with Namrata as a guidebook for cancer survivors to promote a good quality life after cancer treatments. Shows feature experts Dr. Dennis Slamon (Inventor, Herceptin), Dr. Debu Tripathy (
MD Anderson) and Dr. Deanna Attai (President,
American Society of Surgeons).
Gujral started in the industry as an actress – a career choice she gave up in 2008 after her first cancer diagnosis. As an actress, Gujral’s highlights include ‘Dancin’ In The Clouds, a first time “Country Rock” meets “Bollywood” duet with country music star
Steve Azar (“Waitin’ on Joe” w/
Morgan Freeman), recurring role of “Fari Bin Ghori” on CBS’s “The Agency” produced by Wolfgang Petersen (“The Perfect Storm”) and a five-year stint, on NBC’s ‘Passions’ (2001-2005).
Gujral also essayed the role of Pakistani-American “Saira Ahmed” in CBS’s Family Law (for which Gujral, along with co-stars
Tony Danza
Tony Danza (born Anthony Salvatore Iadanza; April 21, 1951) is an American actor. He is known for co-starring in the television series ''Taxi'' (1978–1983) and '' Who's the Boss?'' (1984–1992), for which he was nominated for an Emmy Award a ...
and
Kathleen Quinlan
Kathleen Denise Quinlan Abbott (born November 19, 1954) is an American film and television actress. She is best known for her Golden Globe-nominated performance in the 1977 film of the novel '' I Never Promised You a Rose Garden,'' and her Golde ...
, were Columbia Tristar’s official nomination for
Emmy Awards 2002).
Health
In 2013, she was treated for
Burkitt's lymphoma. She was treated with aggressive chemotherapy including
intrathecal
Intrathecal administration is a route of administration for drugs via an injection into the spinal canal, or into the subarachnoid space so that it reaches the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and is useful in spinal anesthesia, chemotherapy, or pain ma ...
chemotherapy
Chemotherapy (often abbreviated to chemo and sometimes CTX or CTx) is a type of cancer treatment that uses one or more anti-cancer drugs ( chemotherapeutic agents or alkylating agents) as part of a standardized chemotherapy regimen. Chemothe ...
at
City of Hope for six months. The cause of
lymphoma
Lymphoma is a group of blood and lymph tumors that develop from lymphocytes (a type of white blood cell). In current usage the name usually refers to just the cancerous versions rather than all such tumours. Signs and symptoms may include enla ...
was prior chemotherapy from 2008 for
breast cancer
Breast cancer is cancer that develops from breast tissue. Signs of breast cancer may include a lump in the breast, a change in breast shape, dimpling of the skin, milk rejection, fluid coming from the nipple, a newly inverted nipple, or a r ...
. In 2013, Gujral was in remission from both cancers.
In 2008, Gujral was treated for early stage, invasive
breast cancer
Breast cancer is cancer that develops from breast tissue. Signs of breast cancer may include a lump in the breast, a change in breast shape, dimpling of the skin, milk rejection, fluid coming from the nipple, a newly inverted nipple, or a r ...
. She underwent surgery and chemotherapy. She hosts ''Thrive! With Namrata'', a panel based show with cancer survivors on the ''Thrive Channel''. She is featured in
Uniglobe Entertainment's cancer docu-drama titled ''
1 a Minute'' released in 600 theaters. This is the largest release to date for a cancer-related film in cinema history. The docudrama is directed and produced by Gujral and also stars breast cancer survivors
Olivia Newton-John
Dame Olivia Newton-John (26 September 1948 – 8 August 2022) was a British-Australian singer, actress and activist. She was a four-time Grammy Award winner whose music career included 15 top-ten singles, including 5 number-one singles on the ...
,
Diahann Carroll,
Melissa Etheridge
Melissa Lou Etheridge (born May 29, 1961) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and guitarist. Her eponymous debut album was released in 1988 and became an underground success. It peaked at No. 22 on the ''Billboard'' 200 and its lead ...
,
Mumtaz
Mumtaz ( ar, ممتاز) is a name commonly used in various countries in the Muslim world, mainly Afghanistan, Brunei, Malaysia, Pakistan, Bangladesh, India and Turkey. It can also be used as a female name. ''Mumtazah'' is a related female versio ...
,
Jaclyn Smith
Jacquelyn Ellen "Jaclyn" Smith (born October 26, 1945) is an American actress and businesswoman. She is best known for her role as Kelly Garrett in the television series '' Charlie's Angels'' (1976–1981), and was the only original female lead ...
and cancer survivors
Lisa Ray
Lisa Rani Ray (born 4 April 1972) is a Canadian actress and model who has also worked internationally. Ray began her modelling career in India in the early 1990s, appearing for leading Indian brands like Bombay Dyeing and Lakmé. She made her ...
,
Barbara Mori
Barbara may refer to:
People
* Barbara (given name)
* Barbara (painter) (1915–2002), pseudonym of Olga Biglieri, Italian futurist painter
* Barbara (singer) (1930–1997), French singer
* Barbara Popović (born 2000), also known mononymously as ...
and cancer treatment advocates
Deepak Chopra,
William Baldwin
William Joseph Baldwin (born February 21, 1963), Note: While birthplace is routinely listed as Massapequa, that town has no hospital, and brother Alec Baldwin was born in nearby Amityville, which does. known also as Billy Baldwin,is an American ...
,
Daniel Baldwin
Daniel Leroy Baldwin (born October 5, 1960) is an American actor. He is the second oldest of the four Baldwin brothers, all of whom are actors. Baldwin played the role of Detective Beau Felton in the NBC TV series '' Homicide: Life on the Str ...
,
Priya Dutt
Priya Dutt Roncon (born 28 August 1966) is an Indian people, Indian politician and social worker. She was elected for the first time to the 14th Lok Sabha from Mumbai North West (Lok Sabha constituency), Mumbai North West constituency in Mahara ...
and
Nancy Brinker
Nancy Goodman Brinker (born December 6, 1946) is the founder of The Promise Fund and Susan G. Komen for the Cure, an organization named after her only sister, who died from breast cancer. Brinker was also United States Ambassador to Hungary fr ...
. This marked Gujral's directorial debut.
Music
Gujral made her singing debut with the single "Dancin' In The Clouds", an American
country rock meets
Bollywood
Hindi cinema, popularly known as Bollywood and formerly as Bombay cinema, refers to the film industry based in Mumbai, engaged in production of motion pictures in Hindi language. The popular term Bollywood, is a portmanteau of "Bombay" (fo ...
style duet, with country star
Steve Azar, currently playing on
Country Music Television. The single also features on MTV and VH1. Hollywood composer
Jay Ferguson of
Spirit
Spirit or spirits may refer to:
Liquor and other volatile liquids
* Spirits, a.k.a. liquor, distilled alcoholic drinks
* Spirit or tincture, an extract of plant or animal material dissolved in ethanol
* Volatile (especially flammable) liquids, ...
and
Jo Jo Gunne
Jo Jo Gunne was an American rock band, formed in Los Angeles, California, United States, in 1971 by Jay Ferguson and Mark Andes after they had left Spirit. The band was named after a Chuck Berry song, "Jo Jo Gunne". They released their eponymou ...
fame produced the single, reportedly making her the first American artist with Eastern roots to be featured on
CMT.
Awards
For her role as Saira Ahmed on the CBS series ''
Family Law
Family law (also called matrimonial law or the law of domestic relations) is an area of the law that deals with family matters and domestic relations.
Overview
Subjects that commonly fall under a nation's body of family law include:
* Marriage ...
'', Gujral, along with co-stars
Tony Danza
Tony Danza (born Anthony Salvatore Iadanza; April 21, 1951) is an American actor. He is known for co-starring in the television series ''Taxi'' (1978–1983) and '' Who's the Boss?'' (1984–1992), for which he was nominated for an Emmy Award a ...
and
Kathleen Quinlan
Kathleen Denise Quinlan Abbott (born November 19, 1954) is an American film and television actress. She is best known for her Golden Globe-nominated performance in the 1977 film of the novel '' I Never Promised You a Rose Garden,'' and her Golde ...
, were
Columbia TriStar's official nomination for the 2002
Emmy Awards.
Filmography
* ''
STILL
A still is an apparatus used to distill liquid mixtures by heating to selectively boil and then cooling to condense the vapor. A still uses the same concepts as a basic distillation apparatus, but on a much larger scale. Stills have been use ...
'' (2022)
* ''
Finding Match'' (2023)
* ''
America's Forgotten 2'' (2021)
* ''America's Forgotten'' (2020)
* ''
5 Weddings'' (2018)
* ''
Destination Survival'' (2016)
* ''
You Can Thrive'' (2016)
* ''
Ultimate Survivor
''Ultimate Survivor'' is a 2004 compilation album by the American rock band Survivor, containing 18 songs from 1979 to 1988, plus the previously unreleased song " Rockin' into the Night" (which was also recorded by 38 Special 38 Special may ref ...
'' (2015)
* ''
Thrive! With Namrata'' (2014)
* ''
1 a Minute'' (2010)
* ''
Americanizing Shelley
''Americanizing Shelley'' is a 2007 Hollywood romantic comedy film directed by Lorraine Senna and starring Beau Bridges, Namrata Singh Gujral, Shaheen Khan, Wil Wheaton, Noureen DeWulf, Tony Yalda, and Ajay Mehta. The film was the closing film of ...
(2007)
* ''
Kaante
''Kaante'' () is a 2002 Indian Hindi-language action-thriller film directed by Sanjay Gupta, written by Milap Zaveri, and starring an ensemble cast including Amitabh Bachchan, Sanjay Dutt, Kumar Gaurav, Sunil Shetty, Lucky Ali, Mahesh Manjre ...
'' (2002)
* ''
House of Sand and Fog'' (2003)
* ''
Mitsein'' (2009)
* ''
The Agency'' CBS – (2001–2002)
* ''
Passions
''Passions'' is an American television soap opera that originally aired on NBC from July 5, 1999, to September 7, 2007, and on DirecTV's The 101 Network from September 17, 2007, to August 7, 2008. Created by screenwriter James E. Reilly and ...
'' NBC – (2001–2005)
* ''
Family Law
Family law (also called matrimonial law or the law of domestic relations) is an area of the law that deals with family matters and domestic relations.
Overview
Subjects that commonly fall under a nation's body of family law include:
* Marriage ...
'' (2001)
* ''
Dragnet'' (2004)
* ''
Training Day
''Training Day'' is a 2001 American crime thriller film directed by Antoine Fuqua and written by David Ayer. It stars Denzel Washington as Alonzo Harris and Ethan Hawke as Jake Hoyt, two LAPD narcotics officers over a 24-hour period in the gan ...
'' (2001)
Music videos
References
External links
Platform MagazineMtv.com*
*
Namrata Singh Gujral on ''Americanizing Shelley''*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gujral, Namrata Singh
1976 births
Living people
American film actresses
American television actresses
American Sikhs
Indian emigrants to the United States
University of West Florida alumni
People from Dharamshala
American people of Portuguese descent
American people of Punjabi descent
American people of Tibetan descent
American actresses of Indian descent
Actresses from Himachal Pradesh
21st-century American women