NEW DELHI: Born on October 18, 1991, in Kampala, Uganda, Mamdani is the son of Ugandan scholar Mahmood Mamdani and acclaimed Indian filmmaker Mira Nair.
Indian-origin democratic socialist Zohran Mamdani, who has been elected as the new Mayor of New York City, invoked former Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru in his victory speech.
Addressing a crowd of supporters, Mamdani drew inspiration from Nehru’s historic “Tryst with Destiny” speech, delivered on the eve of India’s independence in 1947.
“Standing before you, I think of the words of Jawaharlal Nehru. A moment comes but rarely in history, when we step out from the old to the new, when an age ends and when the soul of a nation long suppressed finds utterance. Tonight, we have stepped out from the old into the new,” Mamdani said, echoing Nehru’s words.
The newly elected mayor said the victory symbolised a new era for New York, promising to lead with boldness. “This will be an age where New Yorkers expect from their leaders a bold vision of what we will achieve, rather than a list of excuses for what we are too timid to attempt,” he said.
Mamdani, who is of Ugandan-Indian heritage, also pledged that his administration would prioritise addressing the city’s cost-of-living crisis. “Central to that vision will be the most ambitious agenda to tackle the cost-of-living crisis that this city has seen,” he added.
Indian-American filmmaker Mira Nair on Tuesday shared Indian movie director Zoya Akhtar’s praise for the former’s son, Zohran Mamdani, on his electoral victory in the crucial New York Mayor elections.
Nair reposted Akhtar’s Instagram story that was captioned “Zohran you beauty”, with emojis of hearts and fireworks. Akhtar also said “Zohran Mamdani has officially won the NYC mayoral race at 34 years old”.
The development came hours after New Yorkers elected young leftist Mamdani as their next mayor and Democrats won two key state governor races, with US voters delivering an early warning to President Donald Trump ahead of 2026’s midterms.
Picture credit social media
