15 talented South Asian actors to know RN

Bringing much-needed representation to Hollywood.

6 August 2023

South Asian representation has been making huge strides in mainstream Hollywood recently.

I mean, the 2023 Oscars alone were a massive deal for brown excellence, with the Telugu-language tune Naatu Naatu having everyone on their feet dancing, while Pakistani activist Malala Yousafzai received a coveted Best Documentary Short nom for Stranger at the Gate, which was won by Indian filmmakers Kartiki Gonsalves and Guneet Monga for The Elephant Whisperers.

This follows on from those who have worked tirelessly in the entertainment industry over the years to bring our stories to life, with prominent examples being Mindy Kaling and Priyanka Chopra Jonas.

And Just Like That star Sarita Choudhury on South Asian inclusion, cultural stereotypes and Seema's journey

"I'm not the perfect representation of every South Asian woman, but I'm trying my best."

By Jabeen Waheed

And now, with us being in the midst of South Asian Heritage Month, it's important to encourage other emerging South Asian talent to reach new heights, and close the gap on South Asian representation on-screen.

Here are our 15 most talented performers who have infiltrated Hollywood and are here to stay and tell our diverse stories.

Frazer Harrison
Geraldine Viswanathan
If there's one South Asian performer working in Hollywood who has had some seriously impressive acting credentials to her name in a short period, then it's Geraldine Viswanathan. Pretty early in her career, the actress, who is half-Indian and half-Swiss, was shortlisted for the prestigious Heath Ledger Scholarship in her native Australia in 2015, and just a few short years later got her big Hollywood break in the 2018 film Blockers alongside John Cena and Leslie Mann. Major.
In the following years, she worked with Hugh Jackman and Allison Janney in Bad Education and led her own rom-com, The Broken Hearts Gallery, alongside Stranger Things star Dacre Montgomery. Things are only kicking off as she's currently starring in Apple TV's The Beanie Bubble and will soon be the lead in the star-studded flick Drive-Away Dolls. Mark our words, Geraldine is a future Oscar winner.
Catch her in: The Beabie Bubble, Drive-Away Dolls, Hala, Blockers, Bad Education
Daniele Venturelli
Nida Khurshid
Born in Pakistan, Nida Khurshid moved to Texas in the United States at three years old, and despite being overwhelmed with the culture shock while being raised Muslim, she found solace in ballet for thirteen years before moving on to acting and modelling. Nida soon landed her breakout role in the Supernatural spin-off series, The Winchester, as Latika "Lata" Desai, a young hunter-in-training.
Talking about the diverse role, she said: It's been so special because I remember, growing up, all I wanted was to be able to see myself in some capacity on television and in movies. I think our show is doing a really beautiful job of just that. Not only do we have different types of people, but they're also just normal people existing in society.
Nida added to Looper: "Back in the day, there were a lot of stereotypes in film and television, but now I can be a Pakistani-Indian girl who's a hunter, no questions asked."
Catch her in: The Winchesters, For the People, Station 19
Kevin Winter
Avantika Vandanapu
Avantika has been hard at work since she was a young girl, with her dance skills earning her second place in Dance India Dance Lil Masters in 2014. She later made her acting debut in the Telugu-language film Brahmotsavam before landing her own Disney movie, Spin, in 2021. Avantika also starred alongside Rebel Wilson in the comedy Senior Year, and things are only set to get better for her as she has signed on to star in Mean Girls: The Musical in the role of Karen Smith.
Catch her in: Spin, Senior Year, Brahmotsavam
Mike Marsland
Priya Kansara
Priya Kansara headed up probably the funniest movie of 2023, Nida Manzoor's Polite Society. This followed roles in Netflix's Bridgerton and The Bastard Son & The Devil Himself. On smashing South Asian stereotypes, Priya told GLAMOUR UK: "I'm so thankful that I've had such incredible support from my family and those around me, and I can't imagine how difficult it must feel to be misunderstood within your own community, amongst your own people. It's so important for us to encourage diversity in this way within our own community and allow people to feel free. This is what people fought for, right? It was for us to have the choice."
Catch her in: Polite Society, Bridgerton

Roy Rochlin
Ritu Arya
This Barbie is a South Asian queen! Ritu Arya bagged a coveted role in Greta Gerwig's speculator pink-themed Barbie movie, which is a massive deal. But the British-Indian actress has long been paying her dues, having been nominated for a British Soap Award for her role in Doctors early in her career. The Oxford School of Drama-trained actress has also earned praise as Lila Pitts in the second season of Netflix's The Umbrella Academy and starred in Niza Manzoor's excellent breakout comedy, Polite Society. Citing the British comedy sketch show Goodness Gracious Me as a groundbreaking turning point for her while growing up, Ritu told Vogue India: "For the first time, we saw South Asians, our family homes, stories about them, that allowed us to just poke fun at ourselves. It was brilliant."
Catch her in: Polite Society, Barbie, The Umbrella Academy
Axelle/Bauer-Griffin
Naomi Scott
Half Indian, half British actress Noami Scott has been in the game for a while now. The 30-year-old got her big break in the teen comedy series Life Bites and Lemonade before getting every girl's dream role of Princess Jasmine in the 2019 live-action adaptation of Aladdin. If that wasn't enough, she also starred in the Charlie's Angels reboot, directed by Elizabeth Banks, and last year fans saw her in Netflix's thriller Anatomy of a Scandal. Noami previously spoke to Teen Vogue about dealing with the intricacies of her culture, stating: "Don't get me wrong, there were moments growing up where you're like ', oh I don't really feel Indian enough.' But now I'm at a place where I'm like, you know what, it's OK. It doesn't make me any less Indian or any less half Indian. My two favourite meals — one is my mum's curry and one being a roast dinner. And that is me in a nutshell."
Catch her in: Lemonade, Aladdin, Charlie's Angels, Anatomy of A Scandal
Mike Coppola
Deepika Padukone
If you know anything about Bollywood, you will most certainly have heard about Deepika Padukone. She is a massive star in India, having made her name in flicks such as Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani and Bajirao Mastani. It wasn't long before Hollywood came knocking, and she made her Stateside debut in XXX: Return of Xander Cage opposite Vin Diesel in 2017. The following year, she was listed as one of Time's 100 most influential people in the world. She has also regularly topped Bollywood's list of highest-paid actresses.
Catch her in: Om Shanti Om, Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani, Bajirao Mastani, XXX: Return of Xander Cage, Pathaan
Jason Mendez
Maitreyi Ramakrishnan
Carrying a whole show on your shoulders is a difficult task, especially if it's your professional acting debut. Maitreyi Ramakrishnan did just that while also winning wide-spread acclaim as Devi Vishwakumar in the Never Have I Ever, which is centred on the Indian-American teen's high school experience. In fact, the role made her so sought after that she was named a Breakout Actor in Time's 100 Next List in 2021. The Canadian-Tamil star also received the honorary Radius Award from the Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television at the 10th Canadian Screen Awards. Having become a huge success story for the streamer Netflix, Maitreyi will soon be seen in their new rom-com The Netherfield Girls, a contemporary adaptation of Jane Austen's novel Pride and Prejudice.
Catch her in: Never Have I Ever, Turning Red, The Netherfield Girls

Leon Bennett
Richa Moorjani
Richa Moorjani came to mainstream recognition with her role as lead protagonist Devi's picture-perfect, genetically gifted, super-smart older cousin Kamala Nandiawada in Mindy Kaling's hit Netflix sitcom Never Have I Ever. She has also appeared in Kaling's comedy series, The Mindy Project and NCIS: Los Angeles. Unapologetically proud of her Indian roots, the actress has also been trained in traditional dance, telling The Hindu: "I will dance until I cannot. Basically, until I die!"
Catch her in: Never Have I Ever, NCIS: Los Angeles, The Mindy Project
Charley Gallay
Megan Suri
Never Have I Ever didn't just propel Maitreyi and Richa's careers but also leveraged Megan Suri, who played the role of another rival Indian high-schooler Aneesa. Megan told Teen Vogue about her character: "I'm so stoked that I got to play a brown character like Aneesa, who is something we don't see—not just opposite to Devi, but we don't ever see cool Indian girls in the media. That was something that I gravitated towards, and I was honoured that they thought I was the one to do that."
Never Have I Ever came after her breakout role in the 2019 independent comedy film The MisEducation of Bindu, which also starred Priyanka Bose and David Arquette. This year alone, she starred in the thriller Missing alongside Storm Reid and the supernatural horror film, It Lives Inside, as well as the acclaimed series Poker Face. We predict big things for Megan!

Catch her in: Never Have I Ever, The MisEducation of Bindu, Missing, Poker Face
John Shearer
Alia Bhatt
Born to Indian film director Mahesh Bhatt and actress Soni Razdan, actress Alia Bhatt has followed in their footsteps and has been a hot commodity in Bollywood for a while now. During her decade-long career so far, the 30-year-old has won an impressive five Filmfare Awards (India's equivalent to the Oscars), been a frequent fixture on Forbes India's annual Celebrity 100 list since 2014. and is one of India's highest-paid actresses. With her impressive achievements, it wasn't long before Alia signed on to make her Hollywood debut, which she will do in Netflix's Heart of Stone alongside Jamie Dornan and Gal Gadot.
Catch her in: Heart Of Stone, Gangubai Kathiawadi, Darlings, Raazi
Amy Sussman
Simone Ashley
Simone Ashley made her grand entrance in the world of the 'Ton during Bridgerton's second season, which catapulted her to international stardom. Born Simone Ashwini Pillai to Indian parents, the British actress, who is of Tamil descent, previously admitted in an interview with GLAMOUR UK that her parents were hesitant about her showbiz desires. She told us: "My parents were quite protective over me. They're first generation. They came from India to this country, so they didn't really have a life where they could choose to be whatever they wanted to be."
Nonetheless, they ended up supporting her move to Los Angeles, where she bagged her first role as a background "party girl" in 2015's Straight Outta Compton. From there on out, she featured in Broadchurch, Wolfblood, Sex Education, and the rest is history.
Catch her in: Sex Education, Bridgerton

Darren Gerrish
Charithra Chandran
While Simone Ashley made a name for herself in Bridgerton, her co-star Charithra Chandran, who played her younger sister in the Netflix period drama, also became a star. Her turn as Edwina Sharma was so impressive that she actually won Glamour UK's Rising star accolade at the Women of the Year Awards in 2022. She also spoke to us about her journey in accepting her Indian heritage over the years, from unapologetically bringing her Indian food to lunch at school and posting photos wearing traditional clothing. Talking specifically about the diversity of her character in Bridgerton, she added: "I'm a proud Indian woman, but I'm also more than that. Our characters in Bridgerton really encapsulated that – by making our culture, our heritage and our identity so significant, but also allowing us to be unique individuals with our own set of benefits and flaws."
Catch her in: Bridgerton, Alex Ryder, How to Date Billy Walsh
Karwai Tang
Anya Chalotra
The Witcher fans will be familiar with Anya Chalotra after the Netflix fantasy drama series gave her her first big break in 2019 after her extensive training at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama. Named as one of Screen Daily's Stars of Tomorrow 2020, she quickly became a sought-after rising starlet and soon starred in Sky Arts' short film special called No Masks. The half-Indian half British actress is also keeping her options open for future work, stating that she's taking Hindi classes, telling Vogue India: "I kid you not, I grew up on Bollywood. It was a way for my dad to show me his culture. There was a song from every cult movie—Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham..., Kal Ho Naa Ho, Main Hoon Na, Veer-Zaara—that I learned and performed for my family at some point."
Catch her in: The Witcher, No Masks, Army of the Dead: Lost Vegas, NEW-GEN
Irvin Rivera
Iman Vellani
Casting the role of Kamala Khan in the miniseries Ms. Marvel was no easy feat, but Pakistan-born Canadian actress Iman Vellani certainly did not let anyone down as the long-awaited project hit Disney+ in 2022. After winning critical acclaim with her debut acting project, Iman will reprise Kamala's role in The Marvels, a sequel to the 2019 film Captain Marvel. Iman recently explained that this role brought her closer to her Pakistani roots. She told Esquire Middle East: "Being Pakistani was a part of my life I was very dismissive about, and I felt disconnected from my culture prior to this show."
She added: "I was born in Pakistan, but I moved to Canada when I was a year old. I didn't feel like I had a connection to it. I didn't have any Muslim Pakistani friends. And I'm so grateful I got to be on a show with so many Pakistanis and Indians, many of whom I grew up watching with my family,"
Catch her in: Ms. Marvel, The Marvels