Anjli Mohindra on being a British South Asian actress

Meeting British south Asian actress Anjli Mohindra is really exciting: beautiful, kind and talented, she represents the future of south Asian talent on British screens and it's looking really bright. Best known for appearing in the Doctor Who spinoff The Sarah Jane Adventures, in the TV movie The Boy with the Topknot, which is a rites of passage story based on the memoirs of British Asian journalist Sathnam Sanghera, and for her turn as Nadia, the clever yet brutal jihadist in Bodyguard; the BBC's most watched TV drama in a decade, Anjli exudes a quiet strength bellied by a humble confidence and relatable sense of humour.

Reflecting on choosing to become an actress, she says, “I just always loved the arts so much and I loved watching theatre. I loved reading books. I loved painting and looking at art and it just felt like working in a creative field was just the most natural thing. And also there's like this weird paradox of like wanting to sort of blend in but also really wanting to stand out in a way or to tell stories. But then the minute the storytelling's over I just want to kind of like disappear back into the back. I guess storytelling as an actor is storytelling for an adult or for adults. And so at the moment that's acting, but I think I'm also sort of starting to get into writing now as well, so I think it's this storytelling element of it that I love and have always loved.”

She notes that was very fortunate that following her persistent “bugging”, her parents allowed her to attend The Television Workshop in Nottingham, where she grew up but she acknowledges, “I just don't think it's ever seemed like a sustainable career choice. And I think what makes me sad, but also really hopeful is realising that there is so many other roles that aren't just about acting like there are so many different departments that go into making stage projects and screen projects that I was sad that I didn't know about any of those or that they weren't sort of available to me at school or weren't spoken about in those connections meetings that some people have when they kind of get ready to leave school. Yeah, and hopeful because it means that there's a real potential out there for more South Asian and other minority ethnic groups to be part of the actual making of shows. The producing and writing in there.”

And indeed today more and more south Asians are entering the myriad of creative careers available in the production of art, in all it’s forms, whether that’s the film and TV industry or publishing industry. Subconscious bias to race is still a barrier to enter though and Anjli says her experience of being an actor as a woman of colour has “been quite mixed. So when I was training at the TV workshop, we sort of just played whatever part was kind of going. We weren't really divided up in terms of race or gender or anything. You just played whatever, even if it was like unlikely that you would be that person in real life because of your physical limitations. So it was really strange coming into the industry and then realising all of my passion and ability was sort of bottlenecked into just what the industry would be able to see me as. I found that really restrictive and weird at first and I think I was really spoiled because one of my first jobs leaving the TV workshop was to work on the Sarah Jane adventures written by Russell T Davies who is just one of the most inclusive and empowering and championing writers of our time, So yeah, I found it really difficult at first, just kind of like looking at myself from the outside and looking at how I came across. It was strange and sad 'cause I just felt like our industry was hundreds of years behind where we are as people. Yeah, it is really difficult when you know that perhaps you're being passed up on something not because you're not good enough, or it's actually the opposite. You are good enough. It's because of something external like your skin color or ethnicity.”

She says reflecting on her parents journeys helped her navigate this difficult challenge. “My Dad was in the army and was one of the only sort of like non-Caucasian people in his sort of regiment and my Mum has always just been one of those people who just like smashes through glass ceilings and she doesn't take a moment to note it. She's one of my biggest inspirations because she doesn't really think about how the world perceives her. She just like single-mindedly goes after things. So I wasn't raised to look at the world from from the perspective of somebody who'll have these hurdles placed in front of them because of the color of their skin. I wasn't primed to look at the world that way, but I felt it. I really, really felt it, and sometimes me and my Dad would like bash heads because I'd be like I feel like that person is being a little bit funny with me and he'd be like they're not and trying to get him to see it my way was really difficult because he just didn't see it. You feel like you kind of being gaslit and then the older you get you kind of go no, I think those things are valid. It’s just little things like that [where] you can't help but feel them and you're like ‘God. I am different. I am different. People do feel differently.’ I'm not saying everybody does, it's just such a small minority of people. But it's enough to feel othered.”

And it is because of this subconscious bias Anjli feels there needs to be a more conscious effort to include individuals from ethnic minority backgrounds into the production process. “Make sure you're working with a 50/50 cast and crew. I think it's just about making sure on set the backgrounds of the people represent the backgrounds of the people in real life, so you're having a real slice of what we see outside in the real world. And that's what makes stories that much more interesting and fun to watch. And for south Asian creatives she says putting yourself out there is the best way of creating opportunities for yourself. “There seems to be a real shift in our industry now where if you are a multi-hyphante - are a writer, actor, director or singer and actor, it’s considered cool. A few years ago it was it was not so cool and you needed to pick your thing. You needed to stay in your sort of lane, but now we've got some incredible talent making their own, producing their own work, and I think the industry does take note and notices people who shine and are out there making stuff happen and I think when you start out you should write. You know you should become like the the navigator of your own career and for ages I was like no I just wanna act. But I'm starting to realise that if you are from a minority ethnic background you need to sort of stand out a little bit, and so I think I'd encourage anybody who's interested in the arts to sort of make their own work because you just don't know who's watching. I've got a friend who was in a short film and and the short film was entered into like a competition and one of the judges with was Danny Boyle and they ended up working together on on Danny Boyle's last huge film. So you just don't know who's watching this stuff that you're making; you've got to keep going out there and keep making stuff. You have to be very tenacious I guess.”

For Anjli, her dream role is that of antihero. “Someone who's struggling with their own issues with their own flaws,” she explains. “Emotional scarring or a social anxiety or anxiety in itself, or depression and having to overcome that to be the person that they sort of destined to be and help people or you know, create a sort of change in their world whether that be literal as a superhero, or whether that be like a dark twisted detective who's sort of escaping their own past. I mean stories like that, those are always really interesting. So it's like a human struggle as as much as it is like a save the world type thing. And I think everyone sort of loves an underdog story. I think it's it's a real human thing to relate or to champion the person who needs it. I guess we also feel like the underdog sometimes. Absolutely everybody feels we're all overcoming our own personal struggles everyday, aren't we?”

For herself, Anjli wishes she had been “more proud of my background when I was younger. And also to just question stuff more like to be brave enough to say I'm an actor and I'm putting my face to this role and I'm putting all my energy into this role and and therefore I'd like to have a bit more of a creative output. Like honouring the writing completely, but also having a bit more of a collaborative discourse going on if there’s anything in the playing of that role that you feel like could be developed somewhat. Sometimes you play a part and you think, well, that's a bit of a jump. A minute ago, the character was doing this and now they're doing that. I don't feel that works and just being brave enough to say, yeah, could we talk about that? Could I get a bit more of an insight into what your plans are with that? Or do you think maybe we could try this to try and unlock something? I think I wish I'd been braver earlier. I wish I could be braver now. Sort of recognising your own power, I think is something that I'm still exploring.”

Thinking about the industry, she says change is necessary there too.“Sometimes I feel frustrated that I don't see as many actors of color winning stuff because it seems like you can't really win awards if you're not really going up for the bigger and you can't go for bigger roles unless you've got the experience to get into them. It’s difficult to get experience if there's a pigeonhole casting thing going on, but then there there is a shift happening. I feel encouraged that things are changing. I just wish they would happen faster 'cause I think we've got some absolutely incredible talent in this country and some phenomenal actors who've been at it for years, who I think have haven't had the recognition that I really believe they deserve. And it would just be so satisfying and just to see them walk off with a sort of one of those metal faces or golden statues.”

For future generations of south Asian women looking to become actors she advices, “if there is anything else you want to do. I would also keep that plate spinning because it's just such an uncertain terrain and just so much of it is not in your hands,. And that can often feel quite powerless and dispirited if there isn't something else that you also can sort of pour all of your passion into right now.” But beyond that, she says, “keep going, if you love it enough like just keep going 'cause one part can change the course of your sort of career. It can get you an agent. It can get you to like the next level of your career. It can. It might seem like a small something that might seem like a small part in a play that not many people are going to get to see can totally be the most amazing platform and help you stretch your muscles and spread your wings a little bit. Just keep hungry and passionate. I think if you throw yourself into all the opportunities that you can find and sort of link up and follow people that you really look up to who are creating and producing work, I think the industry is full of really lovely people who want to give opportunities to new talent who are brilliant and passionate and respectful, so I think just be a good human and keep going.”

You can listen to an extended version of this interview on our podcast Brown Boss here and on Apple and Amazon podcasts.