Kiran Rao

Production

Kiran Rao

Born November 7, 1973 · Bengaluru, Karnataka, India (age 52)

Kiran Rao (born 7 November 1973) is an Indian filmmaker who works in Hindi cinema. She has directed the films Dhobi Ghat (2011) and Laapataa Ladies (2024). In 2016, Rao co-founded Paani Foundation, a non-profit organisation. She was married to famous Indian actor, Aamir Khan, from 2005 to 2021.

Known For

Like Stars on EarthLike Stars on Earth · 2007
Like Stars on Earth
8.02007
MovieDrama
Ishaan Awasthi is an eight-year-old whose world is filled with wonders that no one else seems to appreciate. Colours, fish, dogs, and kites don't seem important to the adults, who are much more interested in things like homework, marks, and neatness. Ishaan cannot seem to get anything right in class; he is then sent to boarding school, where his life changes forever.
DangalDangal · 2016
Dangal
7.92016
MovieDramaFamily
Dangal is an extraordinary true story based on the life of Mahavir Singh and his two daughters, Geeta and Babita Phogat. The film traces the inspirational journey of a father who trains his daughters to become world class wrestlers.
Sitaare Zameen ParSitaare Zameen Par · 2025
Sitaare Zameen Par
6.92025
MovieComedyDrama
A disgraced basketball coach is given the chance to coach a team of players who are intellectually disabled as part of community services. Gulshan has apprehensions at first and feels out of place but soon realizes they just might have what it takes to make it to the national championships.
Monsoon WeddingMonsoon Wedding · 2001
Monsoon Wedding
6.82001
MovieComedyDrama
A stressed father, a bride-to-be with a secret, a smitten event planner, and relatives from around the world create much ado about the preparations for an arranged marriage in India.
Dil Chahta HaiDil Chahta Hai · 2001
Dil Chahta Hai
6.92001
MovieDramaRomance
Three inseparable childhood friends are just out of college. Nothing comes between them - until they each fall in love, and their wildly different approaches to relationships creates tension.
Laal Singh ChaddhaLaal Singh Chaddha · 2022
Laal Singh Chaddha
6.32022
MovieDramaRomance
Events in India's history — from the Emergency and the famous Cricket World Cup win to the Punjab riots , unfold from the perspective of an innocent Sikh man Laal Singh Chaddha, a person with a low IQ but high optimism. Laal is able to achieve everything under the sun but his childhood love continues to elude him.
Lost LadiesLost Ladies · 2024
Lost Ladies
7.82024
MovieComedyDrama
In 2001, somewhere in rural India, two young brides get accidentally swapped on a train. In the ensuing chaos, they both encounter a host of colourful characters, resulting in hilarious and unexpected consequences.
SwadesSwades · 2004
Swades
7.32004
MovieDrama
A successful Indian scientist returns home to his village to take his nanny back to America with him, and in the process rediscovers his roots.

Filmography

Sort
The WolfThe Wolf · 2026
The Wolf
2026
MovieDocumentary
Yuan, a 60 year old former village mayor in Shanghai, seeks freedom through heartbreak, marriage and LGBTQ+ repression in modern China. Known as "Wolf," Yuan is a mother, business owner and lesbian who remains married while caring for her aging husband. Her life has been shaped by compromise at every turn, her identity negotiated within rigid family and societal expectations. Now, with her daughter grown, she is finally claiming space for herself and a new relationship with a woman thirty years her junior. But in a country where personal desire and duty are rarely allowed to coexist, nothing stays simple for long. Shot on iPhone with striking observational intimacy, The Wolf weaves past and present into a compelling portrait of a woman who has spent decades navigating the gap between the life she was given and the one she wants.

Executive Producer

Satyamev JayateSatyamev Jayate · 2012
Satyamev Jayate
6.72012
SeriesTalkDocumentary
Satyamev Jayate is an Indian television talk show that aired on various channels within Star Network along with Doordarshan's DD National. The first season of the show premiered on 6 May 2012 and marked the television debut of popular Bollywood actor and filmmaker Aamir Khan. The show highlights sensitive social issues prevalent in India such as female foeticides, child sexual abuse, dowry, medical malpractice, honor killings, insensitivity towards the physically disabled, domestic violence, overuse of pesticides leading to pesticide poisoning, alcoholism, untouchability, plight of senior citizens and water crisis. Satyamev Jayate received an overwhelming positive response and feedback from both the critics as well as the public. The show was widely appreciated by several film and television personalities, politicians and social activists for its research, format, presentation and content.

Producer