Rama Duwaji is the “it girl” of New York City.
According to her fans, Duwaji, the wife of Mayor Zohran Mamdani, is a “modern-day Princess Diana.” Some have gone so far as to cut their hair in her signature “bixie.” In late January, The New York Times wrote an entire article about Duwaji’s attendance at a Whitney Museum party, noting that she “hung out with a small band of friends” while a security detail kept watch. Meanwhile, her Instagram following keeps growing. This time last year she had about 24,000 followers. Today, she has more than 2 million.
The irony, according to Duwaji, is that she is not a public figure. In the one interview the 28-year-old has granted since her husband took office, she told Hyperallergic, a social justice–minded arts publication, that she is more focused on “allowing my art to speak for itself.” The mayor used similar language in early March to brush off reports that she had liked a post supporting the Hamas attack against Israel on October 7, 2023. Mamdani told reporters that she’s a “private person” who doesn’t deserve the scrutiny of an elected official.
“I, however, was elected to represent all eight and a half million people in this city, and I believe that it’s my responsibility, because of that role, to answer any questions about my thoughts and my policies and my decisions,” he added.
Almost immediately, debates broke out over the definition of a private person. Can a First Lady who lives in Gracie Mansion claim to be such a thing? Or is that just a shield she and the mayor hide behind to evade tough questions on her inflammatory politics?
