Cinecom/Mirabi. Director Mira Nair; Producer Michael Nozik, Mira Nair; Screenplay Sooni Taraporevala; Camera Ed Lachman; Editor Roberto Silvi; Music L. Subramaniam; Art Director Mitch Epstein
Denzel Washington
Sarita Choudhury
Roshan Seth
Sharmila Tagore
Charles S. Dutton
Joe Seneca
Indian director Mira Nair's tragicomedy is less passionate and disturbing than many US pics dealing with race relations. Mississippi Masala is handled with a light touch.
The dramatic opening, set in Uganda in 1972, shows a middle-class Indian family forced to leave when Idi Amin takes power. A liberal lawyer (Roshan Seth) who has defended blacks in court, his wife (Sharmila Tagore) and little daughter Mina catch the last plane out under an eerie, threatening state of siege.
Story jumps to present-day Mississippi, where the family has settled. Nair skilfully depicts an interracial small town where there's a minor traffic accident involving a white redneck, black youth Demetrius (Denzel Washington) and a pretty Indian girl, the grown-up Mina (Sarita Choudhury). Mina and Demetrius are attracted to each other right away.
Washington is savvy and attractive as the enterprising carpet cleaner destined for a brighter future. Choudhury is a discovery as the Americanized Mina, who calls herself a kind of masala (mixed spices). Together, they carry the film smoothly and agreeably.
(Color) Available on VHS, DVD. Extract of a review from 1992. Running time: 118 MIN.
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