Navroz Prasla and VP Kamala Harris.
As of 2020, there are approximately 4.6 million Indian Americans in the United States, comprising 1.4% of its population and remaining the largest group of South Asian Americans currently in the US.
And, in recent years, more Indo-Americans have emerged into the Hollywood entertainment scene. Mindy Kaling’s role as Kelly Kapoor in NBC’s sitcom The Office remains one of the most notable.
But one Indo-American, in particular, hasn’t just made a name for himself in American media, but he’s also set out to revolutionize how communities communicate and highlight international performers in American entertainment.
Meet Navroz Prasla, an Indo-American filmmaker and businessman who just received the 2022 Lifetime Achievement Award.
Indo-American Leadership in the United States
The Indo-American community has recently taken America by storm in both business and entertainment: The helms of tech giants like Google, Twitter, and Microsoft are now manned by Indo-Americans, and popular TV media like The Office and The Simpsons introduce (and are somewhat known for) Indo-American characters into their storytelling.
According to research from the American Community Survey, Indo-Americans are some of the most successful in the nation. The median annual family income of most Indo-American households was north of $130k in 2019, with most of these households housing Indo-Americans between the ages of 25 and 55.
The population of Indo-Americans in the United States has also grown steadily since the year 2000, increasing from 1.9 million to 4.6 million in 2019.
It’s no secret that Indo-Americans are doing something right, but what exactly is behind their success? Data shows that it may be the upbringing.
Indo-American Family, Education, and Professional Trends
The same American Community Survey finds that Indo-Americans tend to come from stable families and receive the most education: 82% of Indo-American adults college-educated. And 78% between the ages of 25 and 55 are married.
The most prominent figure is that 94% of Indo-Americans do not divorce.
With this data, we can surmise that Indo-American parents know what it takes to set their children up for success. But how does all this play a role in Navroz Prasla’s life and success?
From Mumbai to Houston
Navroz Prasla
Prasla hails from Mumbai, India, where he grew up with a large Bollywood influence that, since childhood, inspired him to venture into the world of filmmaking. Prasla knew the land of opportunity would be the best place for him to start.
He moved to Houston, TX, in 2002, where he promoted international performers and started work on his first motion-picture production, a film called Kshitij (which means “A Horizon”), after intuitively identifying a niche market for ordinary storytelling and founding his own media production company, Media Films Craft.
The movie was shot in the Indian language of Marathi and was also shot in India. But instead of shooting for the stars and crossing his fingers, Prasla drew on his own childhood experiences to create something extraordinary from the ordinary.
Speaking to Common Struggle in Kshitij
Prasla’s drama chronicles the journeys of a 12-year-old girl in India who seeks to further her education and professional career amidst her battles with poverty and painstaking adversity. True stories inspired the film.
Sound designer from Indian smash-hit Slumdog Millionaire, Resul Pookutty, assisted Prasla in the film’s audio production. Together, the duo created a memorable motion picture that received rave reviews and an ICFT UNESCO Gandhi Medal (a state award from India) after its debut in India on December 2nd, 2016.
Prasla’s gifted storytelling ability would springboard his debut film into more success. Kshitij would continue to garner international praise and awards alike.
The Prasla Mantra
To Prasla, storytelling thrives when you extract the ordinary and turn it into something unique. He creates with just one rule in mind: “Always focus on ordinary people.”
Since the release of his debut film, Prasla has applied this philosophy in the making of Ishq Bheegaye Naina, a music video, and the founding of MediaFilmsCraft and MediaFilmsCraft Music, a label to showcase culture and diversity.
Prasla has never seemed interested in detailing stories about the rich and famous. “They’re not a part of my emotional mind,” he says. You could say, then, that he spends his emotional budget well.
Since the start of his success, Prasla has become known as an international public figure and an Indo-American leader in entertainment with a large platform. He himself knows this, taking great care to navigate the social landscape cautiously and make movies that make statements rather than box office records.
Prasla’s Plans for the Future
Local newspapers in the United States are disappearing at an alarming rate, disconnecting communities and destroying social cohesion. In response, Prasla founded NTV America, a studio that provides community interest coverage alongside entertainment.
NTV America, with its community interest coverage, seeks to fill the gap that newspapers are leaving behind by covering important public policy and serving the overall information needs of local communities across the country.
To Prasla, the future is all about taking it step-by-step: “Aspirations change, but the vision should be constant, work hard but also smart, and plan big and long term but keep on achieving short-term goals to make your own staircase which helps to move towards becoming a synonymous brand and the success will follow eventually. Tomorrow is another day to win. You can eat your cake and have it too if you are smart, follow the shows of those who face the sun.”
Looking Beyond the Visible
Prasla is living proof that it’s possible to create something extraordinary from what may be considered to be the norm. Instead of laboring to find the diamond in the rough, take a look at what’s already around you. You never know where it may take you.
