How Bollywood shaped Zohran Mamdani’s win; NYC’s first ‘filmy’ mayor just lived out his own Mira Nair script
New York City's first South Asian mayor, Zohran Mamdani, is also Bollywood's first political heir abroad. Here's how cinema helped him win
Newly elected New York mayor Zohran Mamdani celebrated his victory in a way that quickly drew attention online — by walking out to the hit Bollywood track Dhoom Machale from the hit 2004 film Dhoom, featuring Hrithik Roshan, John Abraham and Aishwarya Rai. A moment for the books, captured by attendees and shared widely across social media, saw Zohran glowing as he basked in his well-deserved success.
The 34-year-old Democrat emerged victorious in a closely contested three-way race, defeating former New York governor Andrew Cuomo, who ran as an independent, and Republican candidate Curtis Sliwa. And none of this would have been possible without his cultural ties to South Asia's biggest export — Bollywood.
Zohran's strong connection to Indian cinema
Zohran's ties to Indian cinema run far deeper than his victory playlist. His mother, acclaimed filmmaker Mira Nair, is known for globally celebrated works such as Salaam Bombay! (1988), Monsoon Wedding (2001) and The Namesake (2006).
While the films are not Bollywood per se, they explore the delicate settings of Indian households through the talents of Bollywood stalwarts like Naseeruddin Shah, Shefali Shah, Tabu, and Irrfan Khan. His father, on the other hand, Mahmood Mamdani, is a respected academic and author whose writings explore colonialism, identity and post-independence politics.
Interestingly, Nair met Mahmood Mamdani while scouting locations for her 1991 film Mississippi Masala — a cross-cultural love story starring Denzel Washington and Sarita Choudhury that explored the expulsion of Indians from Uganda under Idi Amin’s regime. Mahmood was among those displaced, and their meeting eventually led to marriage. The couple moved frequently for his academic work before settling in New York.
The mother-son creative bond
Mira has often credited her son with shaping key creative decisions in her career. When she was offered the opportunity to direct a Harry Potter film, she turned to Zohran for advice. “He said to me, ‘Mama, many good directors can make Harry Potter, but only you can make The Namesake.’”
Zohran's involvement in The Namesake didn’t end there. Nair has revealed that it was her son who convinced her to cast Kal Penn in the lead role. “I was chasing movie stars for Gogol’s role. And he (Zohran) said, ‘Mama, you have to watch Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle.’ I looked at the poster and thought, ‘How can I like this goofy guy?’” she said in an earlier interview.
But because no one can convince an Indian mum like her first born son, she watched it, and unsurprisingly took a liking to Penn’s performance in the cult comedy. “I then asked to see him (Penn), and then he got the part because he was the genuine article. Because he was raised in the country, and he was exactly in that sense, Gogol.” A big break for Penn as he made his ‘serious’ debut alongside legends like Tabu and Irrfan.
As reported by Variety, Zohran also contributed to Mira Nair’s Queen of Katwe as a third assistant director and music supervisor. He also appeared briefly on screen as a student bookmaker and performed a rap track titled #1 Spice for the film’s soundtrack, released under his stage name, Young Cardamom.
A symbolic choice
So, did Bollywood really help him win? It certainly played its part. Throughout his campaign, Zohran leaned into the charm of old Indian classics to connect with voters. From posting videos in Hindi to slipping in classic Bollywood dialogues, he brought a unique ‘filmy’ energy to New York politics.
In one viral clip, he recreated Amitabh Bachchan’s legendary Deewar (1975) scene — “Aaj mere paas buildingein hain, property hai, bangla hai…” — before striking Shah Rukh Khan’s iconic pose and replying, “Aap.” In another, he cleverly used Om Shanti Om’s (2007) soundtrack and a scene from Karz (1980) to explain ranked-choice voting. His campaign visuals mirrored retro Bollywood posters — all bright colours, bold fonts, and cinematic flair — while his speeches often opened with a familiar “Bhai aur behnon.”
Furthermore, Zohran's campaign visuals drew inspiration from vintage Bollywood posters, and the campaign didn't shy away from embracing vibrant hues and expressive typography to reflect Zohran's South Asian identity. “Zohran mentioned Bollywood posters as an inspiration and sent a couple over. There’s definitely expressive typography in them and you see a lot of yellow and red,” the designer, Aneesh Bhoopathy, explained to The Hollywood Reporter. “We weren’t going to shy away from looking different from the standard campaign font. And playing into the identity of being South Asian. So we tried some different types of styles.”
Following his win, director Zoya Akhtar congratulated him on Instagram, sharing a story that read, “Zohran, you beauty”, with a heart and firework emojis. Mira proudly reshared the post, celebrating her son’s milestone moment.
As Zohran begins his tenure as mayor, his Dhoom Machale moment stands out as a snapshot of how the influence of Indian cinema, the soft power of entertainment, moves beyond winning hearts. It can quite literally win you an election!
