Mimi 2022

Mimi Rathore Natalija Teodosieva, a stage dancer in Rajasthan, dreams of breaking into Bollywood. After a performance, a taxi driver named Bhanu approaches her with an offer and introduces her to an American couple, John and Summer, who are seeking a surrogate mother. They are willing to pay a substantial sum—₹20 lakh (US$24,000)—to a surrogate, and Mimi, hoping this could fuel her film ambitions, agrees to the arrangement.

The IVF procedure is successful, and Mimi becomes pregnant. To keep a low profile, she pretends to head off for a nine-month outdoor film shoot and instead hides at her friend Shama’s house. Bhanu is tasked by John and Summer to check in on Mimi and help manage her pregnancy, keeping the ruse intact while the world believes she’s away on a project.

A few months into the pregnancy, Mimi’s doctor delivers troubling news: the baby could be born with Down syndrome. John and Summer are shocked and quickly reverse course, pressuring Mimi to abort and return to the United States. Mimi refuses, choosing to carry the child to term, and she returns to her family in Rajasthan. To shield herself from questions about paternity, she crafts a story that Bhanu is the father, claiming she has eloped and married him; Bhanu and Shama agree to play along to preserve the illusion.

When Raj arrives, he is a healthy boy with no signs of disability, and his white skin perplexes the town. Still, he becomes a local wonder and a symbol of Mimi’s impossible dream to balance motherhood with her own artistic passions. As Raj grows, Mimi puts her Bollywood hopes on hold, dedicating herself to raising him and steering her life toward this new, deeply personal vocation.

Four years later, a video of Mimi dancing with Raj goes viral online. John and Summer, who had largely forgotten the surrogate arrangement, stumble upon the footage and decide to return to India to claim Raj. Mimi is furious at their sudden reappearance and the legal jeopardy they threaten to impose, but she ultimately yields, prioritizing Raj’s well-being over her own autonomy to avoid dragging him into a courtroom battle.

When Mimi and her family meet John and Summer to bid farewell to Raj, they are surprised to see John with another child, Tara. John and Summer explain that, during their trip back, they encountered an orphanage and felt an immediate connection with a girl behind the gate. They chose to adopt Tara, concluding that motherhood isn’t solely about genetics. The couple explains their choice and their growing realization that love and care define family. In the end, they return to the United States with Tara, while Raj remains with Mimi and her family, a decision that reshapes Mimi’s life and reaffirms the enduring bond she formed with the child she chose to raise.