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Charithra Chandran says she felt pressure on Bridgerton set: ‘What if I messed it up for future Indian actors?’

‘When you are brown, there are so few opportunities available,’ actor says

Peony Hirwani
Wednesday 20 April 2022 08:11 BST
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Bridgerton Season 2 Trailer Netflix

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Bridgerton star Charithra Chandran has revealed that she felt pressure to do well while filming the second season of the hit Netflix show.

The 25-year-old actor, who starred as Edwina Sharma in series two, opened up about how she felt as though she was representing other Indian actors.

“When you are brown, there are so few opportunities available – that’s changing rapidly – but I was stressed that if I didn’t do a good job… what if I messed it up for future Indian actors?” she told Grazia.

“Which is such an extreme thought process, I know, but it didn’t stop me feeling that way.”

Last month, Chandran also shared that she’s “so proud” to represent the South Asian people who lived in the UK during the period the show is set.

In the show, her character, along with elder sister Kate (Simone Ashley) and mother Mary (Shelley Conn), are recent arrivals in town from India.

(LIAM DANIEL/NETFLIX)

“We have to remember that actually, in 1814, which is when the second season is set, there were 50,000 South Asians in the country, so we were here and of course, we weren’t members of the ton, but we were in the country,” she explained.

“Obviously Bridgerton is in a fantasy world, and it’s just a carnival of joy and we don’t address England’s difficult past with India, but we are so intrinsically linked, the two countries.”

Season two of Bridgerton is available to watch on Netflix. You can read The Independent’s review of the show here.

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