Actor Nitu Chandra made her Hollywood debut last year, and it wasn’t a cameo, but a full-fledged lead role. Typically, Indian performers who appear in projects in the West are seen in blink-and-you-miss-it roles. But Chandra, on the other hand, appeared in high-octane combat sequences as one of the female leads in the film Never Back Down: Revolt.

She says, “There have been films where they (Indian actors) have done a two-minute or five-minute role. And [because] they were heavily publicised and hyped, with audiences being promised big things, we, Indians, ended up being disappointed after watching them.” 

But the 37-year-old wants to change that with her choices. Currently being managed by late actor Irrfan’s team in Los Angeles, USA, she has bagged two more Hollywood projects. And she insists on playing parts that represent Indians correctly: “I’ve denied two projects where the representation of Indians wasn’t shown in a very positive light. I don’t want to do anything that maligns our identity. I want three billion global Indians to be proud of me.”

Moreover, to focus on her career in the West, Chandra has bought a home in LA and is planning to buy a house in London, UK, too: “I want to work everywhere in the world, across languages. I did a Greek film (Block 12; 2016) too.”