Welcome to Renegades, Gold House’s editorial series spotlighting Asian Pacific leaders and creatives who are carving their own paths and defying stereotypes along the way.

This week features Smriti Mundhra, documentarian filmmaker, producer, and creator of Muslim Matchmaker. Born in California, Smriti grew up between Los Angeles and Bombay. After studying the arts, Smriti started her career assisting on sets for major directors including the Coen Brothers and Spike Jonze before going on to produce her own celebrated projects including A Suitable Girl, St. Louis Superman, and pandemic sensation, Indian Matchmaking.

Smriti talks to us about the differences between filming documentary vs. reality television, telling fascinating and complex stories that happen to feature diverse subjects, and harmonize our various cultural identities as we grow through life. Stream Muslim Matchmaker on Hulu today!

What did you want to be when you were growing up and how does that compare to where you are now?

My father was a director so I always knew I would work in film in some capacity. But until my late 20s, I was pursuing a career as a producer and wanted to be one of the great indie film producers, like Christine Vachon or Anthony Bregman, that I grew up idolizing in the 90s and early 2000s. By the time I started my career though, the era of a producer really having a creative voice was gone, so I went back to film school and pivoted to writing and directing, which in hindsight is where I belonged.

How did growing up between Los Angeles and Mumbai influence your storytelling? In what ways have your personal experiences helped you bridge South Asian narratives with a universal audience?

Growing up in two countries and at home, in two different cultures, definitely influenced my storytelling, because it taught me to recognize what feelings are universal (such as the desire for companionship, fears of mortality, etc), but allowed me to root those universal feelings in specific worlds. It also taught me what aspects of storytelling don’t really translate across borders, like certain kinds of humor and tone, when you try to please two very different audiences at the same time.

The widespread attention that Indian Matchmaking captured in 2020 had a profound impact on the public lives of its participants. How did you navigate the balance of portraying their personal stories on screen, and did you adopt a similar approach for Muslim Matchmaker?

The most important thing when bringing people’s stories onto the screen is absolute transparency about the style, tone, and intention of what you’re making, and walking them through step-by-step the filming process and also the potential impact to their lives after release. The dating shows like Indian Matchmaking are very different than the documentaries, because those people respond to a casting call and have a desire to be on TV and some awareness of what that means. I take a lot of pride in treating the participants in all my projects with respect and care, often even refraining from using certain footage that would portray them too negatively or cause them harm in some way, because I believe there’s always a way to craft a compelling narrative and tell someone’s emotional truth without ruining anyone’s life. This was especially important in Muslim Matchmaker, because we’re dealing with a community that has been unfairly and horribly vilified and misrepresented in the mainstream media.

Muslim Matchmaker dives into the nuanced world of Muslim-American dating. How do you hope this show will reshape viewers’ understanding of the Muslim-American experience?

I wanted to show the rich diversity of Muslims across every dimension: race and ethnic background, practice of faith, and views on relationships and marriage. But I also wanted to show that Muslims ARE Americans, and share the same yearning for companionship and challenges of finding it as any other community I’ve showcased in this way. I also found that there is so much Islamic wisdom that is just great dating advice, regardless of your faith. I find myself praying Istikhara when I need guidance, or thinking about my own halal/haram ratio!

Your upcoming series Bollywood Dance U, shines a spotlight on Bollywood-style dance teams at universities. What sparked your interest in this vibrant subject, and do you see these teams as essential to preserving and celebrating South Asian culture?

In mainstream pop culture, we’ve almost exclusively seen the college experience through a white lens. I wanted to tell a quintessential college-coming-of-age story that centered the unique experiences of South Asians, for whom both college and coming-of-age have different, and sometimes higher, stakes than in other communities. For a lot of South Asian kids, college is the first time we feel comfortable being ourselves—in grade school and high school we’re often isolated and ashamed of our names, our food, our skin color—but then we come to college and find safety in numbers. The collegiate Bollywood dance circuit was born out of this desire for safety within community, and has grown to be so massive because South Asian kids have recognized that what they need from college is different than what you might find in a fraternity or sorority. We need to shed the shame we carried when we were younger and reconnect with our culture and find a way to harmonize our various identities.

As the founder of Meralta Films, known for impactful projects like the Academy Award-nominated film, St. Louis Superman, how do you view your work contributing to the broader conversation of diversity and representation in entertainment?

I think the best way to shift culture and push the boundaries of diversity and representation in entertainment is not to lead with that as a goal. I never make something just because I like the possibilities of representation. I have a high standard to tell great stories about fascinating, complex characters that can stand up against the most entertaining, insightful, elevated and binge-able content that’s out there. It just so happens that I see great stories in places that have historically been ignored by the mainstream.

As we near this year’s Oscars, can you share your experience of filming nominated doc short, I Am Ready, Warden? What drew you to this story and why did you feel you were the right filmmaker to tell it?

This is my third short documentary, and each one examines an aspect of American life wherein the institutions designed to protect someone like me, are harmful to others who are less protected. St. Louis Superman is about the trauma of gun violence, Shelter was about the housing crisis, and I Am Ready, Warden is about criminal justice and capital punishment. The death penalty is a stain on our collective morality, and I felt compelled to examine a policy enacted in my name, ostensibly for my protection, through a lens that got to the core of why it doesn’t deliver the justice and closure it promises. While it is an absolute thrill to be nominated for an Academy Award for this film, I think I’m even more proud of the fact that our distribution plan has made the film available in law schools, district attorney’s offices and prisons all across the country. The conversations the film has started about forgiveness, redemption and justice will hopefully have an even more lasting impact than awards.

Looking ahead, is there a genre beyond documentaries you’re eager to expand to? What project are you most excited to share next?

My next project is about the aggravating discomfort of being a woman in business.

Lightning Round | Red Flag, Green Flag, Beige Flag

Very close to their family: GREEN!

Has never been in a relationship: Depends on age, but if above 33 years old, RED!

Responds to your texts quickly: GREEN!

Sticks to a strict daily routine: GREEN! My husband is one of these people.

Binge watches TV shows: BRIGHT, FLUORESCENT GREEN. If you can’t binge, I can’t hang.

Thank you for reading Renegades!