If you thought Poorna Jagannathan was not to be played with as mom Nalini Vishwakumar on “Never Have I Ever,” just wait. The actress from the hit Netflix series is next set to play a mafia head in the forthcoming comedy “The Out-Laws” and an “aunty-gangster” in the upcoming series “Deli Boys.”
For Jagannathan, it’s a thrill to see new types of roles opening up for women who look like her.
“I think finally our outsides are beginning to match our insides,” she told CNN. “The portrayals of us are beginning to actually reflect who we really are. They are beginning to mirror our real lives – our desires, our heartbreak and our joy. And it’s an exhilarating thing to be part of closing that outside-inside gap.”
Jagannathan has long been hailed for her talent, including for her critically acclaimed role as Safar Khan in the 2016 HBO miniseries “The Night Of” (HBO is owned by CNN’s parent company Warner Bros. Discovery).
She credits those women of color behind the scenes – including “Never Have I ever” co-creator Mindy Kaling and uber producer Shonda Rhimes – with creating projects that have opened up opportunities.
“I think female creators of color, like Mindy and Shonda, are the ones pushing the stories of strong female characters out,” Jagannathan said. “But I think places like Netflix are able to really listen to viewers, especially viewers of color, who are demanding to see their identities reflected back to them.”
More diversity also means chances to take on fun roles, like playing tough-as-nails crime boss Rehan in “The Out-Laws.”
The film stars Adam DeVine as a straight-laced bank manager who suspects that his far from conventional future in-laws, played by Pierce Brosnan and Ellen Barkin, might be criminals.
Jagannathan jumped at the chance to play a villain.
“I grew up on Bond and Benny Hill and this script hit me in my sweet spot. To prepare, I watched all the Bond movies, and this character is a composite of all my favorite Bond villains,” she said. “It’s rare to see a south Asian female playing the villain because I think to play the villain you need to be given a lot of power. And we’re rarely portrayed as that powerful in the media.”
Having just turned 50 in real life, the star is leaning in to taking on work that excites her.
“The next series I’m doing – ‘Deli Boys’ – I’m playing an aunty-gangster,” she described. “I think after running a household full of Indian women (on ‘Never Have I Ever’), the next logical step is to run a mafia den. But I’m excited to enter my 50s as a gangster. It feels ridiculously right.”
“Deli Boys,” which also stars Asif Ali and Saagar Shaikh, has been picked up by Hulu for streaming at a later date.
“Never Have I Ever” debuts its fourth season on Thursday, and “The Out-Laws” debuts on July 7.