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Queer South Asian Film’s Release Marked By Community Support
By Romen Basu Borsellino | 27 Jun, 2025

The Queen of My Dreams, an independent film, hit theaters on Friday. South Asians flocked to screenings to show their support.

On Saturday evening, I threw on an eggplant colored suit, a port wine colored button down (no tie), and some shiny white sneakers before heading to Santa Monica's Laemmle arthouse movie theater for a special screening of Director Fawzia Mirza’s "The Queen of My Dreams."

The invitation said “smart casual” but it also said there would be a photographer so there was no way I wasn’t going to look spiffy. Not to mention some of the likely attendees who I wanted to impress. Lilly Singh as well as actors and directors from Hulu's "Deli Boys" would be in attendance. 

Attendees in the packed theater were there to see a movie that, despite getting buzz for some time now, had only just been released the day before. It was shot in 2022, premiered at Cannes in 2023 and publicly screened at Toronto International Film Festival in 2023. The film had started as a play that Mirza first performed in 2012. 

"The Queen of My Dreams," which stars Amrit Kaur from HBO’s "The Sex Lives of College Girls," is about the strained relationship between a queer college-aged girl, Azra, and her mother. Things intensify when Azra’s father dies and she travels to Karachi, Pakistan for the funeral. The film jumps back and forth between present day and Azra’s childhood as well as her own mother’s coming of age. In addition to playing Azra, Kaur portrays the younger version of her mother.

The movie, in my opinion and that of most film critics who have reviewed it, is a touching story that was beautifully shot and well acted. Following the screening, attendees were treated to an exclusive Q&A with Director Fawzia Mirza and star Amrit Kaur. Mirza described the film as her love letter to mothers everywhere. 

The Q&A was iiluminating. I had spent the movie wondering what South Asian country was used to depict Karachi, as it is not common for films to shoot there for safety reasons. But Mirza stated that she was unwilling to compromise on a proper depiction. It had to be shot in Karachi. She fought tooth and nail to find an insurance company willing to green light the location and eventually succeeded. 

I was also shocked to learn that this was Mirza’s directorial debut. She was previously an actor and noted that when she told her agents of her wish to transition to directing, they dropped her. Her manager then dropped her for not having agents. 

Just last week, it was announced that Mirza has been tapped to direct the film “Hana Khan Carries On,” produced by Mindy Kaling.

Amrit Kaur talked about her reaction to first reading the script and auditioning. The friend who helped her record that submission was so convinced that she was a fit for the role that she told Kaur she would cease to be her friend if she didn’t book it. Fortunately, we will never know if it was an empty threat.

There are a lot of takeaways from Saturday night. One is the proliferation of queer AAPI films. When Deepa Mehta’s “Fire,” a queer Indian Canadian film, was released in 1996, it was groundbreaking. But in just the past few months we’ve gotten the releases of both “Queen of My Dreams" and “A Nice Indian Boy,” a queer rom-com directed by Roshan Sethi and starring Karan Soni. In April, a reboot of Ang Lee’s 1996 “The Wedding Banquet" was released, which starred Bowen Yang and was directed by Andrew Ahn. Ahn also helmed 2022’s queer rom-com “Fire Island,” written by Joel Kim Booster and Starring Kim Booster and Bowen Yang as well.

What was particularly notable to me about the Saturday premier was the community support. Yes, this film deserved all the praise it's been getting. But even if it was not as well-received, I suspect that the theater would have been just as full. AAPI communities show up for one another. And this was not the only screening. There were similarly full crowds supporting the film’s release in Chicago, New York, and Toronto.

Mirza told the audience how important everyone’s presence was and that even buying a single ticket could make a huge difference not just for her but for any filmmaker like her. 

At this particular screening, she may have been preaching to the choir. 


What was particularly notable to me about the Saturday premier was the community support. Yes, this film deserved all the praise it’s been getting. But even if it was not as well-received, I suspect that the theater would have been just as full.

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