2023-06-01 23:37:57
Hollywood has steadily increased the number of diverse actors on screen, including many new South Asian faces.
Stars like Mindy Kaling, Kal Penn and Priyanka Chopra Jonas, among others, have helped usher in a new wave of South Asian talent. As pioneers in their industry, they and many others fought for better representation and stood up for each other.
“I think at different phases of my life, I kind of taught myself or learned to be my own hype girl. And it helped me navigate a lot of crazy situations,” Chopra Jonas told TODAY of adapting to new environments as an immigrant and in her career.
Kaling’s breakout role as Kelly Kapoor in ‘The Office’ not only changed the career of the actor, producer and writer, but it was the first time many young actors saw themselves on American television. .
“When I saw Mindy on screen, Kelly in ‘The Office,’ I was like, ‘Oh my God, she’s Tamil. Wow, that’s so cool!’ So that way I felt seen,” “Never Have I Ever” star Maitreyi Ramakrishnan, 20, told TODAY.com. “But she was still a grown woman and I was 8 years old, you know, so you can’t understand everything. »
“But I think in the little ways you feel seen, even if it’s in little moments of hearing a word that’s in a language you speak at home,” Ramakrishnan added. “These little ways can help. »
The Hollywood Diversity report released by UCLA in 2022 noted that Asians accounted for 6.4% of all film roles, but did not have more specific figures on South Asian roles.
However, the Gracenote Inclusion Analytics 2020-2021 TV Season Report noted an increase in representations of South Asians in television and film, with South Asian men having their screen share close to their share of the American population, 2.3%. Although for South Asian women it is 0.3%.
From seeing an Indian-American family lead Netflix’s ‘Never Have I Ever’ to the revamped ‘Bridgerton’ second season with the Sharma family departing from Bombay (now Mumbai) instead of the English countryside, to Kumail Nanjiani portraying Kingo , the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s first South Asian superhero in “Eternals,” every role is a step in the right direction.
Here are some of the new South Asian stars in Hollywood:
Raymond Yesterday
Famous for: The Canadian actor is known for his role as Sav Bhandari in “Degrassi: The Next Generation”. Since then he has been seen in ‘Orphan Black’, ‘Narcos’, ‘Shadowhunters’, ‘Maid’, ‘Ginny & Georgia’ and ‘Workin’ Moms’.
Upcoming project: Ablack has been a part of “Ginny & Georgia” since its premiere and will return as the owner of Joe’s Restaurant for the third and fourth seasons.
Utkarsh Ambudkar
Famous for: The actor and rapper was a VJ for MTV Desi before heading into TV and film. His credits include “The Mindy Project”, “Pitch Perfect”, “Free Guy”, “Marry Me” and his current show “Ghosts”. He also appeared on the Broadway hip-hop show “Freestyle Love Supreme.”
Upcoming project: He will continue his role in the fourth and final season of “Never Have I Ever”, voice of a character from the series “Avatar: The Last Airbender” and the movie “World’s Best”.
Simone Ashley
Famous for: The British actor first made waves with her ‘Sex Education’ role, but gained even more recognition when she directed ‘Bridgerton’ season two as Kate Sharma. She has also appeared in “Sparrow”, “Detective Pikachu” and most recently “The Little Mermaid”.
Upcoming project: Next, she will voice a character in the animated movie “10 Lives” and is set to appear in the third season of “Bridgerton.”
Charitra Chandran
Famous for: The British-Indian actor also caused a stir as Edwina Sharma in the second season of “Bridgerton”. She also starred in “Alex Rider” and appeared in “The Parables Retold.”
Upcoming project: According to her IMDB, she has many projects underway, including the films “Good Intentions” and “How to Date Billy Walsh.”
Rahul Kohli
Famous for: The English actor was part of the “iZombie” cast, as well as “Supergirl” and “The Haunting of Bly Manor”.
Upcoming project: Be sure to check out Kohli in the upcoming series “The Fall of Usher House,” “Twilight of the Gods” and “Career Opportunities in Murder & Mayhem.”
Liza Koshy
Famous for: The YouTuber-turned-actor has had many jobs, including contributing to “Total Request Live” and hosting a variety of award shows and reality shows like “Double Dare” and “Dancing with Myself.” On the acting side, Koshy’s credits include “Boo!” A MAdea Halloween”, “Work It”, “Liza on Demand” and voicing a character from the animated series “Hamster & Gretel”.
Upcoming project: Koshy voices Arcee in “Transformers: Rise of the Beasts” and will star in thriller “Sniff,” “Players,” rom-com, and “Family,” among others.
Hassan Minhaj
Famous for: The comedian is a Peabody Award winner and served as a senior correspondent for ‘The Daily Show’. He also released a few comedy specials, including “Homecoming King.” He was most recently seen on “The Morning Show.”
Upcoming project: Minhaj will appear in the upcoming comedy “No Hard Feelings,” as well as “Haunted Mansion.” The actor recently starred in Colleen Hoover’s adaptation of “It Ends With Us” as Marshall.
Richa Moorjani
Famous for: The actor has had roles in ‘The Mindy Project’, ‘NCIS: Los Angeles’, ‘9-1-1’ and ‘Home Econonics’.
Upcoming project: The actor returns as Kamala in the final season of “Never Have I Ever” and the fifth season of “Fargo.”
Anirudh Pisharody
Famous for: The actor had roles in ‘Big Sky’, ‘The Goldbergs’, ‘Last Man Standing’ and ‘Morgan’s Secret Admirer’. He is also known as Des in “Never Have I Ever” Season 3 and Ravi Panikkar in “9-1-1”.
Upcoming project: He will then be seen in “Unit 234”.
Maitreyi Ramakrishnan
Famous for: People were introduced to the Canadian actor on Mindy Kaling’s Netflix show “Never Have I Ever,” where she plays Devi. She also voiced Priya in “Turning Red” and Zipp Storm in two Little Pony shows, including “My Little Pony: Tell Your Tale.”
Upcoming project: Fans will see Ramakrishnan as Devi for the last time when “Never Have I Ever” drops its fourth and final season on June 8.
Suraj Sharma
Famous for: The Indian actor made his acting debut in the Oscar-winning film Life of Pi in 2012. He is back in the spotlight following roles in the series ‘God Friended Me’, the film ‘Wedding Season » and more recently « How I Met Your Father ».
Upcoming project: Sharma can currently be seen as Sid in “How I Met Your Father”, which is in its second season.
Jay Shetty
Famous for: Although the British podcaster, author and life coach is not an actor, he a made a name for himself in Hollywood. The Sama Tea co-founder is the go-to for many celebrities — including Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck who asked him to officiate their weddings — for spiritual advice and discussion on his “On Purpose” podcast. He is also known for his bestsellers “Think Like a Monk” and “8 Rules of Love: How to Find It, Keep It and Let It Go.”
Upcoming project: Shetty continues to share his words of wisdom on his social media, podcasts and tours, as well as the Calm app, where he is Chief Purpose Officer.
Megan Suri
Famous for: One of the actor’s most notable roles is starring in the 2019 film ‘The MisEducation of Bindu’ before making his debut in the Netflix series ‘Never Have I Ever’. Suri has also been seen on shows like ‘Bones’, ‘Modern Family’, ‘Atypical’, ‘Fresh Off the Boat’ and ‘Poker Face’.
Upcoming project: Fans will be able to see Suri once more as Aneesa in the fourth and final season of “Never Have I Ever.”
Geraldine Viswanathan
Famous for: The Australian-born actor of Indian and Swiss Tamil descent broke into the 2018 film “Blockers.” Since then, she’s appeared in “Hala,” “Bad Education” and “Miracle Workers.”
Upcoming project: You will next see her in the new season “Miracle Workers”, the upcoming Reese Witherspoon and Will Ferrell comedy “You’re Cordially Invited”, “Drive-Away Dolls” with Pedro Pascal and Matt Damon, and “The Beanie Bubble, among many other films and shows.
1685668194
#Hollywood #wave #South #Asian #faces #meet
