Her face can hide more emotions than the multitudes it can express. So it was not a surprise when Sarita Choudhury suddenly changed gears in the fourth season of the spy saga Homeland. From playing a comely wife to CIA’s division chief (played by Mandy Patinkin) she gate crashed right into the centre of intrigue. We should have anticipated it for she is simply too talented to stay on the sidelines. Those who have been following Sarita since Mira Nair’s Mississippi Masala would agree that the English actress has a chameleonic ability to mould herself with the milieu. Known for playing rebellious characters, when she was asked to play a house wife hiding her passion for singing in For Real , she was equally convincing. With Homeland it is the other way round. Recently, she was seen a in a small role in the latest instalment of Hunger Games but that is more to be seen in the mainstream fluff so that she can get to do a Roar on stage again. She says playing Mira was an easy decision. “The script for Homeland was so well written and Mandy Patinkin is such a soul searching actor.”
Excerpts from an interview:
Do you agree with the politics ofHomelandor is it just a character for you?
I approach all the work through the character. But I love the ideas the show is presenting and how they don’t show America always in the best light, even though this is an American show. I feel they show the humanness of politics as opposed to taking sides with beliefs.
First set in Iran and now Pakistan and Afghanistan, some critics say thatHomelandhelps in spreading Islamophobia in American society?
I actually feel they show positive sides of Islam as well. They have many scenes that reveal America’s ignorance of Islam and how the characters have to learn. And vice versa, showing the assumption of America’s misunderstanding. I feel like it presents elements of East and West facing their limitations.
Tell us about working with Mandy? It seems you come from different schools of acting…
Mandy and I relate very well as actors. We both have theatre training, and even though on screen he is very serious with a steady gaze he actually is very funny and is a pleasure to work with.
How easy or difficult it is to play characters of different nationalities, something you specialise in?
I feel blessed that I have lived in so many countries that for me, playing different nationalities almost feels natural. I grew up in Italy with a Bengali father and British mother and we travelled a lot.
Has theatre proved more satisfying and challenging? Tell us about your experience of playing Frida Kahlo.
Theatre is highly satisfying in terms of words. You get to speak in monologues, words drive the action. I love theatre because of the audience. It feels risky. But I love film because it travels to the whole world. To an audience I don’t see. Playing Frida was hard and wonderful. I found such a force in her, bigger than me. I tried to make it just a woman who had to do what she did. A woman who lived, ate, and laughed. I tried to avoid the ‘icon’ of Frida Khalo.
Tell us about your role in your upcoming filmLearning to Drive?
I loved my role in Learning to Drive . It was so different. The character, Jasleen, was silent and saw America as strange. The director, Isabel Coixet, is so smart and has such self-effacing humour and Ben Kingsley is a true joy to work with.
You have not been seen in Indian films sinceFor Real. Last time you said Anurag Kashyap and Sudhir Mishra had offered to write something for you.
Actually, I said I would love to work with Anurag and Sudhir but there was no exact plan. Somehow the last few years got filled with Homeland , theatre, and an upcoming film by Tom Twyker, in which I am co-starring with Tom Hanks. So I have been crazy busy. But the truth is, I really want to work in an Indian film. Can’t wait!
( Homeland Season 4 appears on Star World Premiere HD every Monday at 9 pm)
