New York Mayoral Race 2025: How Indian-origin Zohran Mamdani used the Trump playbook; and shook Gotham

Time of India

6 hours ago

What do you get when you cross a Bollywood auteur, a postcolonial political theorist, and a GoPro? You get Zohran Mamdani—New York assemblyman, democratic socialist, Instagram heartthrob, and now, just maybe, the most dangerous man in American politics.
Because let's be clear: Mamdani isn't just running for mayor. He's running an insurgency, armed with TikTok transitions, doorbell footage, and a smile that could disarm a drone strike. His opponents came with policy papers. He came with cinematic universe-level storytelling, straight out of his mother's editing room.
Yes, that Mira Nair—director of
Monsoon Wedding
,
The Namesake
, and
Queen of Katwe
. The woman who brought sensuality, sadness, and South Asia to Sundance.
His father? Mahmood Mamdani—arguably the most influential postcolonial political thinker not named Edward Said. The man literally wrote the book on how colonialism morphs into modern politics.
So, what happens when the child of two intellectual titans raised on Kampala, Bollywood, and anti-imperialism decides to take on Andrew 'Prince of Darkness' Cuomo in the ultimate city of contradictions?
You get this race:
Succession
meets
Gangs of Wasseypur,
set in a borough with 8 million opinions and no parking.
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The Return of the Left—but Make It Viral
Mamdani isn't offering policy. He's offering vibe. He doesn't shout at press conferences. He moodily stares into subway cameras while a lo-fi beat plays in the background. He's the only candidate who could turn a rent-free moratorium into a high-production-value montage. He isn't asking for your vote—he's giving you content.
In a debate, State Senator Jessica Ramos tried to land a jab: 'Turns out you just need to make good videos.'
The audience laughed. Mamdani didn't flinch. He just flashed the smile. The one that says: I may not have the machine, but I have the meme.
His campaign? A million doors knocked. Which million? Doesn't matter. Because every knock fuels the algorithm. Every encounter, a TikTok. Ding-dong, democratic socialism. In the Bronx, in Queens, in whatever corner of Brooklyn still hasn't been reclaimed by hedge funders with toddlers named 'Dharma.'
Cuomo the Comeback Cadaver
Image credits: Getty Images
Meanwhile, Andrew Cuomo, like a roach in a blackout, has re-emerged from the ashes of #MeToo, still unrepentant, still smug, still parking his Dodge Charger like it's an official state vehicle.
Cuomo isn't here to inspire. He's here to remind—of favours owed, alliances stitched, enemies blackmailed into silence. His coalition isn't people-powered. It's patronage-powered. He doesn't need volunteers. He has bishops, real estate developers, and the ghosts of Albany.
He hasn't promised anything new because he doesn't have to. He's betting the city's elite would rather trust a disgraced father-figure with a history of sexual harassment than a 33-year-old socialist with DSLR lighting and a suspicious tan.
The Coalition Conundrum
Mamdani's problem isn't enthusiasm. It's demography. His movement is loud, young, and extremely online—but it's also extremely white, extremely college-educated, and extremely allergic to barbershop small talk.
Among Black voters, he's trailing Cuomo by 40 points. Among Hispanic voters, by nearly 10. Sure, he's got Asian voters and Muslims behind him—and in Queens, that counts for a lot—but coalitions win New York.
Vibes don't.
And while Mamdani claims to speak for the 'downtrodden,' his campaign rallies often look like Brooklyn tech start-ups: artisanal tote bags, ironic moustaches, and one guy live-streaming the whole thing for his Substack called 'PostCapital.'
It's the kind of crowd that protests Starbucks for union-busting while sipping $7 mushroom lattes.
The Israel Question—and the Authenticity Wobble
And then there's the issue that just won't go away: Israel. Mamdani's past activism, his Muslim identity, and his silence on slogans like 'Globalise the Intifada' have made him an easy target. Cuomo pounced. The Post pounced. The Times did that thing where they clutch their pearls but never say why they're clutching them.
Mamdani's line—'Israel has the right to exist as a state with equal rights'—feels like it came from a committee meeting in Park Slope. It doesn't ring true. It doesn't land. And in a city with a million Jews, many of them Zionist, you can't obfuscate your way through that minefield.
For a man who has built his campaign on authenticity, the moment he started to sound like a pre-written statement, the illusion cracked. For Cuomo, it was a gift.
The Times, the Times, Always the Times
Ah, the New York Times. The paper of record. And contradictions. In a baffling unsigned editorial, they acknowledged Cuomo's many sins, Mamdani's potential, and Lander's mild competence—and then did the most Timesian thing possible: endorsed the guy they called unethical.
It was a masterclass in elite liberal anxiety. The subtext? We like Mamdani, but we're scared. We want change, but not too fast. We want idealism, but preferably with a resume and a pension.
Translation: 'We like socialism. Just not in the executive suite.'
Lander, the Lost Liberal
And then there's Brad Lander. Poor Brad. The kind of man who wears New Balance, says 'please' to cops, and somehow got detained by ICE for trying to help a migrant. The footage went viral. But even that—even that—wasn't enough to break through.
If your second-highest elected city official gets handcuffed and the city shrugs, you know the narrative has moved on.
Mamdani already owns the stage. Lander's just doing walk-on cameos in someone else's show.
The Final Frame
So here we are: a former governor who might actually be a supervillain; a socialist with cinema in his blood and Marx in his captions; and a city once again trying to decide whether it wants order or imagination, fear or hope, machine or movement. The Mamdani campaign might still lose. But the future it points to is already here. Campaigns are no longer won in smoke-filled rooms—they're won on For You pages.
The new kingmakers aren't ward bosses—they're videographers and content strategists.
And Zohran Mamdani, son of revolution and reel, knows this better than anyone. He's not just running for mayor. He's changing the very aesthetic of politics. The revolution won't be televised. It'll be vertical. In 4K. With a Mira Nair colour grade.