On this episode of Diaspora Dialogues by TOI™, Anirudh Pisharody, Des from Netflix's Never Have I Ever, joins Sujatha Padmanabhan to talk about the role that unexpectedly turned him into a global internet boyfriend and changed how a brown leading man could be seen on American television.
Anirudh discusses why audiences connected so strongly with Des, and what it meant to see a South Asian man portrayed as both intelligent and desirable on Never Have I Ever.
They also talk about growing up Indian in Texas, choosing acting over the pre-med path, the realities of building a career in Hollywood, and why Anirudh eventually decided to create stories himself through Black Velvet Films.
All of this, and more, on this episode of Diaspora Dialogues by TOI™.
Timestamps
00:00 Introduction
03:40 Early Years and Career Choices
08:19 Passion vs Risks
12:45 Playing ‘Des’ in Never Have I Ever
19:50 The Des and Devi Arc
23:35 On The Reductive ‘Indian Stereotype’
30:04 On His Relationship with Jill
36:03 Playing ‘Ravi’ on 9-1-1
39:16 Starting Black Velvet Films
43:26 Dream Roles and Rapidfire Questions
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