"One of Denzel Washington’s loveliest and most under-seen romances… Exactly the kind of movie that deserves to be rediscovered today: a wholly original story.” – Caroline Siede, AV Club
The vibrant cultures of India, Uganda, and the American South are blended and simmered into a rich and fragrant fusion feast in Mira Nair's luminous look at the complexities of love in the modern melting pot. Years after her Indian family was forced to flee their home in Uganda by the dictatorship of Idi Amin, twentysomething Mina (Sarita Choudhury) finds herself helping to run a motel in the faraway land of Mississippi. It's there that a passionate romance with the charming Black carpet cleaner Demetrius (Denzel Washington) challenges the prejudices of their conservative families and exposes the rifts between the region's Indian and African American communities. Tackling thorny issues of racism, colorism, culture clash, and displacement with big-hearted humor and keen insight, Nair serves up a sweet, sexy, and radical celebration of love's power to break down the barriers between us.
Best Screenplay and Audience Award for Best Film, Venice Film Festival
"The movie is both wonderfully tender and wryly funny. Nair perfectly captures the contrasting lifestyles... She treats all her characters with such playful affection and obvious sensitivity that they are hard to resist" - New york Daily News
"This smart, appealing movie about displaced people and severed memories is firmly rooted in Nair's generous appreciation of her all too human characters." - Newsweek
"It takes love to bring all these elements together into harmony, and Nair makes it look easy even when it's most difficult for her characters." - Austin Chronicle