Fawzia Mirza

Fawzia Mirza is a queer, Muslim, Pakistani-Canadian filmmaker, writer, and actor whose work centers South Asian, Muslim, and LGBTQ+ identities with humor, tenderness, and political clarity. Mirza, who uses she/they pronouns, has long used storytelling to challenge stereotypes about gender, sexuality, and faith. Her breakout short "The Queen of My Dreams" (2012), reimagining a classic Bollywood romance through a queer lens, evolved into her acclaimed feature directorial debut of the same name, The Queen of My Dreams (2023), starring Amrit Kaur as a queer Pakistani-Canadian woman navigating her relationship with her mother after her father's sudden death. Mirza's filmography — including the lesbian rom-com Signature Move (2017), co-written by and starring Mirza opposite veteran actress Shabana Azmi, and the short "Noor & Layla" (2021), about two queer Muslim women — foregrounds queer Muslim protagonists rarely seen in mainstream cinema. She co-founded the production company Baby Daal Productions with her wife, producer Andria Wilson Mirza, to support underrepresented artists. Mirza's work has screened at TIFF, SXSW, Outfest, and Frameline, establishing her as one of the most vital queer South Asian voices in contemporary film.