As New Yorkers cast their votes in one of the city’s most closely watched mayoral races, Democrat Zohran Mamdani’s rise has spotlighted not just his politics, but the family that helped shape his view.
From Kampala to City Hall
Born in 1991 in Kampala, Uganda, Mamdani is the son of filmmaker Mira Nair and scholar Mahmood Mamdani. The couple’s transcontinental life — spanning Africa, India, and the United States — deeply influenced Zohran’s global perspective and political values.
He spent his early years in Uganda and South Africa before the family moved to New York City in 1999, when Mahmood joined the faculty at Columbia University. They settled on the Upper West Side, with Zohran later becoming a naturalized US citizen in 2018.
Mira Nair: The storyteller
Mira Nair, born in 1957 in Rourkela, India, is an acclaimed filmmaker known for exploring identity, migration, and cultural intersections. A Harvard graduate, Nair’s debut film Salaam Bombay! (1988) won the Caméra d’Or at Cannes and earned an Oscar nomination.
Her subsequent works — Mississippi Masala (1991), Monsoon Wedding (2001), and The Namesake (2006) — cemented her reputation for blending storytelling with social insight.
Mahmood Mamdani: The scholar
Zohran’s father, Mahmood Mamdani, born in Mumbai in 1946 and raised in Kampala, is one of Africa’s most respected scholars of colonialism and political violence. Expelled from Uganda in 1972 under Idi Amin’s regime, he went on to earn a Ph.D. from Harvard University in 1974.
Now a Professor of Government and Anthropology at Columbia University, Mahmood is known for his 1996 book Citizen and Subject, which introduced the influential concept of the “bifurcated state” — a framework for understanding postcolonial governance in Africa.
He has led institutions from the University of Dar-es-Salaam to Makerere University and the University of Cape Town. From 2010 to 2022, he directed the Makerere Institute of Social Research, rebuilding it into a hub for postcolonial studies.
Mahmood’s outspoken pro-Palestinian stance has made him a controversial figure among pro-Israel advocacy groups. He has criticized Israel’s occupation policies and accused Columbia University of abandoning due process during campus protests — positions his son has echoed in his own political rhetoric.
Also Read | New York Mayor Election: Trump urges Jewish voters not to vote MamdaniA marriage of ideas and art
Mira Nair and Mahmood Mamdani met in 1989 while she was researching Mississippi Masala in Uganda. Nair intended to interview Mahmood about his book From Citizen to Refugee — instead, they fell in love. They married in 1991 and welcomed Zohran the same year.
Their shared commitment to social justice, global identity, and storytelling has clearly influenced Zohran’s political ethos.
Zohran’s wife: Rama Duwaji, artist from Damascus
Alongside his parents’ legacy, Zohran Mamdani’s wife, Rama Sawaf Duwaji, 27, has also stepped into the public eye. A Syrian illustrator and visual artist based in Brooklyn, she met Mamdani on the dating app Hinge. The two bonded over their love of art and music, later marrying in early 2025 at New York City Hall.
Born in Damascus, Duwaji holds a BFA in Communication Design from Virginia Commonwealth University and a Master’s in Illustration from the School of Visual Arts, New York. Her clients include The New Yorker, The Washington Post, VICE, BBC, Apple, Spotify, Tate Modern, and Cartier.
Also Read | Donald Trump mocks Zohran Mamdani: ‘I’m much better looking than him’