The Queen of My Dreams

Amrit Kuar (Bela on The Sex Lives of College Girls) stars as a rebellious, queer, Pakistani-Canadian woman circa 1999 and, in flashbacks, her mother in 1969 Karachi, in this tremendous Bollywood-tinged comedy about the chasm between generations, continents, and upbringing.Living with her girlfriend in Toronto and studying to be an actor, Azra dreads the trip to Pakistan to mourn the loss of her father, which feels just barely worse than facing her traditional Muslim mother, Mariam. Immersed in stifling traditions and grieving rituals upon arrival, Azra leans into her nostalgic love for Bollywood cinema to reflect on her upbringing in Canada. Here in these daydreams, her mother’s own coming-of-age story in Karachi is revealed, shedding light on Mariam’s whimsical love story and once-upon-a-time aspirations. Visually stunning, authentic, and beautifully entertaining, THE QUEEN OF MY DREAMS weaves the stories of a mother and daughter born of two different eras, both steeped in pressures to adhere to cultural expectations and the desire to rebel. This unforgettable dramedy brings the complex layers of the mother-daughter dynamic into full, vivid color. —A.B.