changed and realises that he no longer identifies with the land of his birth. Jay returns to America and relinquishes his long-nurtured dream of returning to Uganda, the place he considered home. Cast Production The script was written in Brooklyn, New York, after research by Nair, Taraporevala, and their team in Mississippi and Kampala. While doing research in Mississippi, Nair met a carpet cleaner named Demetrius and decided to model the main character after him. Ben Kingsley was originally cast in the role of Mina's father, but he eventually withdrew from the project, prompting the original backers of the film to pull out. Nair was able to gain new funding after Denzel Washington was chosen for the role of Demetrius. She later mentioned she faced substantial pressure from potential backers to select white leads rather than Indians or African Americans. The Mississippi-based scenes were filmed in Mississippi, in the towns of Greenwood, Grenada, Biloxi, and Ocean Springs. The Uganda scenes were filmed in Kampala, Uganda, including in Nair's home. Though the Monte Cristo motel was an existing business chosen by Nair and production designer Mitch Epstein for shooting, the production crew added a dark green trim to the exterior to echo the verdant landscape of Uganda. Reception The film was positively received by critics. It received a 92% fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes from 73 reviews with the consensus: "Sarita Choudhury and Denzel Washington’s romantic chemistry lights up the screen in Mississippi Masala, Mira Nair’s observant and sexy tale of cultures clashing." Awards and honors 1993 NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Motion Picture – Denzel Washington 1991 São Paulo International Film Festival – Mira Nair, Critics Special Award 1991 48th Venice International Film Festival – Golden Osella Best Original Screenplay – Sooni Taraporevala; Golden Ciak/Best Film – Mira Nair The film is recognized by American Film Institute in these lists: 2002: AFI's 100 Years...100 Passions – Nominated Home media On May 24, 2022, The Criterion Collection released Mississippi Masala in a newly restored 4K edition on Blu-ray and DVD. The special edition includes new interviews from Nair, Taraporevala, production designer and photographer Mitch Epstein, and cinematographer Edward Lachman. References External links Mississippi Masala: The Ocean of Comings and Goings an essay by Bilal Qureshi at the Criterion Collection Official trailer 1991 films 1991 romantic drama films 1991 independent films African-American romantic drama films African-American films Films about