Democratic New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani’s mother, filmmaker Mira Nair, has allegedly received millions in funding from groups tied to Qatar’s ruling family for over a decade, according to the New York (NY) Post.
Qatar’s state-funded cultural institutions have financed some of Nair’s projects, including a $15 million budget for her 2012 film “The Reluctant Fundamentalist,” paid entirely by the Doha Film Institute, the NY Post reported, citing a 2013 report from The New York Times. The institute, founded by Sheikha Al-Mayassa bint Hamad Al-Thani, sister to Qatar’s ruling emir, also underwrote training programs at Nair’s film labs from 2010 to 2014, according to the NY Post.
A company established by Nair conducted $102,000 in business with Qatari firms in 2022 and 2023, the outlet reported, citing import records. The Qatar National Museum commissioned her to create “Nafas,” a film about pearl divers that premiered at the museum in 2019, where she attended the opening, the outlet reported. State-owned companies produced an extravagant stage adaptation of her “Monsoon Wedding” for the 2022 World Cup festivities, according to the outlet.
“Her Highness Sheikha Al Mayassa bint Hamad Al-Thani has loved the movie but also supported the inception of this musical over several years,” Nair said in an interview with Qatar Happening during the tournament.
BREAKING: The NY Post has uncovered that Qatar bankrolled over a decade worth of films directed by Zohran Mamdani’s mom. pic.twitter.com/pDLyJWjDpp
— Eyal Yakoby (@EYakoby) August 31, 2025
The filmmaker boycotted Israel’s Haifa International Film Festival over policies she claimed “privilege one religion over another,” the NY Post noted. Qatar regulates how non-Muslims practice their faith in public, according a 2023 Department of State report. (RELATED: Former Reagan Ed Sec Registers As Foreign Agent To Help Islamic Nation)
“They are buying somebody who is willing to be bought and at the time of their choosing they will ask for what they want,” Danielle Pletka of the American Enterprise Institute said, according to the NY Post.
Jonathan Schanzer, executive director of the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies, said that only “one degree of separation” could exist between Qatar’s ruling elite and the mayor of America’s biggest city.
“The Qataris are hyperactive in terms of international diplomacy, international investment, and everything that they do is designed to spread their funds and spread their influence,” Schanzer said, according to the outlet.
Sheikha Al-Thani now promotes Mamdani’s mayoral campaign on social media, according to the report.
The Daily Caller reached out to Mamdani’s campaign but has not heard back as of publication.
“The attempt to weaponize his mother’s career against him is an insult to voters who care about actual issues, not manufactured distractions,” campaign spokeswoman Dora Pekec told the NY Post in a statement.
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