Qatar’s deep pockets have bankrolled filmmaker Mira Nair’s projects for over a decade, raising eyebrows about foreign influence in American politics. The socialist director, mother of New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani, has enjoyed steady funding from Qatar’s state-backed cultural institutions. Critics smell a rat, questioning whether this financial pipeline could sway Mamdani’s campaign.
Since 2009, Qatar, a state with a questionable human rights record, has funneled money into Nair’s films and stage productions through Sheikha Al-Mayassa bint Hamad Al-Thani, sister to the ruling emir. This cozy relationship has funded everything from film festivals to training programs. Meanwhile, the sheikha’s recent social media cheerleading for Mamdani’s mayoral bid has tongues wagging about ulterior motives.
The Doha Film Institute, founded by Sheikha Al-Thani, kicked off its support with Nair’s 2009 film “Amelia,” which opened the first Doha Tribeca Film Festival. Qatar’s cultural ambitions were on full display, using Nair’s work to polish its global image. The move was less about art and more about soft power, critics argue.
From 2010 to 2014, the Doha Film Institute funded a filmmaking “bootcamp” at Nair’s Maisha Film Labs in East Africa and Doha. The program trained Qatari students in screenwriting and filmmaking, blending cultural exchange with Qatar’s strategic branding. It’s a clever way to buy influence while looking altruistic.
In 2012, Qatar fully funded Nair’s $15 million film “The Reluctant Fundamentalist,” which conveniently opened that year’s Doha Tribeca Film Festival. The cash didn’t just make movies—it built Qatar’s reputation as a cultural hub. Nair’s silence on Qatar’s human rights abuses, like the deaths of thousands of migrant workers, raises questions about her principles.
Nair’s 2019 film “Nafas,” about Qatari pearl divers, was commissioned by the Qatar National Museum, chaired by Sheikha Al-Thani. Premiered at the museum’s opening, it remains a flagship exhibit, cementing Nair’s role as a cultural darling for Qatar’s elite. For a filmmaker claiming to champion the marginalized, her cozy ties to a Sharia-based regime seem hypocritical.
Since mid-June, Sheikha Al-Thani has hyped Mamdani’s mayoral candidacy on social media, posting favorable polls on Instagram and fire emojis under his TikTok videos with Nair. This public endorsement from a Qatari royal smells like more than just fandom. It’s a red flag for those wary of foreign meddling in American elections.
In 2022, Qatar Airways and Qatar Creates, another Sheikha Al-Thani initiative, produced a stage adaptation of Nair’s “Monsoon Wedding” for the World Cup festivities. The sheikha even invited Nair to join Qatar’s cultural program during the event. It’s hard to see this as anything but Qatar flexing its financial muscle to curry favor.
A company Nair set up in India did $102,000 in business with Agence Publics Qatar in 2022 and 2023, an event management firm linked to Qatar’s oil and gas industry. The web of financial ties grows thicker, yet Nair remains mum on Qatar’s oppressive policies. Her selective outrage, like boycotting Israel’s Haifa Film Festival, feels inconsistent at best.
Qatar’s social policies, rooted in Sharia law, require women to seek male permission for marriage or government roles and punish homosexuality with torture or death. Nair, who presents herself as a voice for the marginalized, has never publicly criticized these practices. Her silence speaks louder than her films.
Thousands of migrant workers died in brutal conditions building Qatar’s World Cup facilities, described as “modern-day slavery” by human rights activists. Yet Nair attended a high-profile Qatar National Museum exhibit opening in November 2024, smiling for the cameras. Her apparent indifference to these atrocities undermines her progressive posturing.
Qatar’s status as America’s “frenemy” complicates things further—it hosts a U.S. airbase while backing anti-U.S. Islamist groups. The country has faced accusations of bribing figures like former Sen. Bob Menendez and European Parliament members. This history makes Qatar’s support for Nair’s work look like a calculated move in a larger influence game.
Zohran Mamdani, Nair’s son, has pledged to make New York an “LGBTQIA+ sanctuary city,” a noble goal that clashes with Qatar’s brutal anti-gay policies. His campaign insists he’s never been to Qatar or received its direct financial support. But their refusal to clarify any contact with Sheikha Al-Thani or financial ties to his mother leaves room for skepticism.
Mamdani’s team didn’t outright condemn Qatar’s ruling Al-Thani family, instead offering vague support for “universal human rights.” That’s a weak dodge for a candidate tied to a regime that bans non-Muslims from public worship and threatens its Bah’aii minority. Voters deserve clearer answers.
Qatar’s cultural investments may look like philanthropy, but they smell like influence peddling. Nair’s films and Mamdani’s campaign are caught in a web of Qatari cash and questionable motives. Americans should be wary of any candidate whose family is bankrolled by a regime with such a checkered record.
