Smriti Mundhra | |
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| Born | Los Angeles, California |
| Education | Columbia University School of the Arts |
| Alma mater | California State University, Northridge |
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| Notable work | |
| Spouse | Christian Magalhaes |
| Father | Jag Mundhra |
Smriti Mundhra (born 3rd of July 1980)[1] is an American filmmaker based in Los Angeles. Her production company, Meralta Films, specializes in documentary films and non-fiction content.
Mundhra won the Albert Maysles New Documentary Director Award at the 2017Tribeca Film Festival for her first feature documentary filmA Suitable Girl, along with her co-directorSarita Khurana.[2][3] Mundhra is also the Executive Producer and Creator ofNetflix's original reality TV series,Indian Matchmaking.
In 2020, she was nominated for theAcademy Award for Best Documentary Short Subject for her filmSt. Louis Superman (2019).
Mundhra was born in Los Angeles, California and raised between Los Angeles andMumbai, India. Her father,Jag Mundhra was also a filmmaker. Before she was born, her parents rented a single screen in Culver City, Los Angeles and became the first exhibitors of Bollywood films in the United States.[4]
Mundhra obtained a Bachelor of Arts (BA) in English fromCalifornia State University, Northridge and Masters of Fine Arts (MFA) degree in film at theColumbia University School of the Arts in 2010.[5] Then, Mundhra moved to Mumbai to begin production on her documentary directorial debut film,A Suitable Girl.
Mundhra started working in film in her teenage years.[6] She was a production secretary on theCoen Brothers'The Man Who Wasn't There andO Brother, Where Art Thou? as well asSpike Jonze'sBeing John Malkovich. She also served as the production assistant onNeil LaBute'sNurse Betty.[7]
Then, she went on to produceBomb the System starringMark Webber[8] that was nominated for anIndependent Spirit Award for the Best First Feature award.[9] In 2005, she producedWaterborne about three sets of residents who band together after a terrorist attack against LA's water supply.Waterborne received the Special Audience Award at theSXSW Film Festival that year.[10] AfterWaterborne, Mundhra producedTanuj Chopra'sPunching At the Sun.Punching At the Sun premiered at the 2006Sundance Film Festival, was an official selection at theTribeca Film Festival and won the Grand Jury Prize at the San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival.[11]
Immediately after graduating from Columbia University, Mundhra, along with fellow Columbia alumna Sarita Khurana, moved to Mumbai to begin filmingA Suitable Girl. The film premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival in 2017.[12][13][14]
In 2018, she directed an ad campaign forBumble's launch in India starringPriyanka Chopra Jonas called "Equal Not Loose".[15] Mundhra was namedDOC NYC's 40 Under 40 Filmmakers.[16]
Mundhra directed and producedSt. Louis Superman, a short documentary, withSami Khan. The film, produced by Mundhra, Khan and Poh Si Teng, follows formerFerguson activist, battle rapper and state representativeBruce Franks Jr. as he tries to pass a critical bill for his community.[17] It was commissioned byAl Jazeera English[18] and premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival in 2019 where it was awarded the Special Jury Mention.[19] It became the first short documentary acquired byMTV's new documentary banner, MTV Documentary Films, helmed bySheila Nevins.[20]
In 2020,St. Louis Superman was nominated for the92nd Academy Award in the category ofBest Documentary Short Film.[21]
Mundhra is also the Executive Producer and Creator ofNetflix's original reality TV series,Indian Matchmaking.[22][23][24][25]
Mundhra is married to Emmy-nominated screenwriter, Christian Magalhaes and they live in Los Angeles, California with their two children.[26][27]
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