Mississippi Masala
Directed by	Mira Nair
Written by	Sooni Taraporevala
Starring	Denzel Washington Roshan Seth Sharmila Tagore Sarita Choudhury
Release date(s)	1991
Language	English
IMDb profile

Mississippi Masala (1991) is a film directed by Mira Nair, based upon a screenplay by Sooni Taraporevala. Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (504x755, 62 KB) Theatrical Poster for Mira Nairs Mississippi Masala This image is of a movie poster, and the copyright for it is most likely owned by either the publisher of the movie or the studio which produced the movie... Mira Nair (born October 15, 1957 at Rourkela, Orissa) is an India-born, New York-based film director. ... Sooni Taraporevala is best known as the screenwriter for the Oscar-nominated Salaam Bombay! and Mississippi Masala, both directed by Mira Nair. ... Denzel Hayes Washington, Jr. ... Roshan Seth Roshan Seth (born 17 August 1942) is a British Indian actor. ... See Tagore for disambiguation Sharmila Tagore (Bengali: ) is a renowned Indian film actress from Bengal, who as of April 2005 heads the Indian Film Censor Board. ... Sarita Choudhury (born 1966 in London, England) is a British-born actress of Indian descent best known for her roles in the Mira Nair-directed feature films Mississippi Masala (1992), The Perez Family (1995) and Kama Sutra: A Tale of Love (1996). ... The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ... Mira Nair (born October 15, 1957 at Rourkela, Orissa) is an India-born, New York-based film director. ... Sooni Taraporevala is best known as the screenwriter for the Oscar-nominated Salaam Bombay! and Mississippi Masala, both directed by Mira Nair. ...

Story

A third-generation Indian-Ugandan family residing in Kampala, is expelled from the country in 1972 by the Idi Amin regime. The father, Jay (Roshan Seth) moves with wife, Kinnu (Sharmila Tagore) and daughter, Mina (Sarita Choudhury) to Greenwood, Mississippi to live with family members who own a chain of motels there. Kampala is the capital city of Uganda. ... Year 1972 (MCMLXXII) was a leap year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Idi Amin Dada (mid-1920s[1]–16 August 2003) was an army officer and president of Uganda. ... Roshan Seth Roshan Seth (born 17 August 1942) is a British Indian actor. ... See Tagore for disambiguation Sharmila Tagore (Bengali: ) is a renowned Indian film actress from Bengal, who as of April 2005 heads the Indian Film Censor Board. ... Sarita Choudhury (born 1966 in London, England) is a British-born actress of Indian descent best known for her roles in the Mira Nair-directed feature films Mississippi Masala (1992), The Perez Family (1995) and Kama Sutra: A Tale of Love (1996). ... Greenwood is situated in Leflore County, Mississippi at the eastern edge of the Mississippi Delta, approximately 96 miles north of Jackson, Mississippi, and 130 miles south of Memphis, Tennessee. ...

In 1990, 24-year-old Mina, who cleans at Anil's (Ranjit Chowdhry) family's motel (the Monte Christo), falls in love with Demetrius (Denzel Washington), a local African American carpet cleaner. The respective families erupt in turmoil after the pair are confronted by members of the Indian family during a weekend of pleasure in Biloxi. Chowdhry (right) as Dr. Gudat in Prison Break Ranjit Chowdhry is an actor of Indian origin. ... Denzel Hayes Washington, Jr. ... An African American (also Afro-American, Black American, or simply black) is a member of an ethnic group in the United States whose ancestors, usually in predominant part, were indigenous to Africa. ... Biloxi redirects here. ...

Ultimately, the two families cannot come to terms with the inter-racial pair, who flee together in Demetrius' van. Both families need to move on, both emotionally and physically, in order to grow. Jay also needs to change. After a brief return to Kampala to attend a court proceeding on the disposition of his confiscated Ugandan house, Jay relinquishes his long-nurtured dream of returning to Uganda, the place he considered home.

The script was written in Brooklyn, NY after extensive research by Nair, Taraporevala, and their team, in Mississippi and Uganda. The Mississippi based scenes were filmed in Greenwood, Mississippi. The motel used in the filming of the motel scenes still stands next to the railroad crossing on US Highway 82 in Greenwood.

Cast and crew

• Denzel Washington - Demetrius Williams
• Sarita Choudhury - Mina
• Roshan Seth - Jay
• Sharmila Tagore - Kinnu
• Charles S. Dutton - Tyrone Williams
• Joe Seneca - Williben Williams
• Ranjit Chowdhry - Anil
• Joseph Olita - Idi Amin
• Mohan Gokhale - Pontiac
• Mohan Agashe - Kanti Napkin
• Tico Wells - Dexter Williams
• Yvette Hawkins - Aunt Rose
• Anjaan Srivastav - Jammubhai
• Dipti Suthar - Chanda
• Varsha Thaker - Kusumben
• Ashok Lath - Harry Patel
• Natalie Oliver - Alicia LeShay
• Karen Pinkston - Mrs. Morgan