Having completed her doctorate at New York University, Mistry teaches writing for experimental film and documentary. She is on the board of Wespennest (a Literary, Arts and Culture Journal) and her areas of research include cultural policy, questions of identity and multiculturalism. She has taught at New York University, University of Vienna and Arcadia Polytechnic in Helsinki and served on the executive committee of the National Film and Video Foundation Board from 2003 to 2006. She is a co-founder of Shadowy Meadows Productions.