Melissa D'Costa D'Silva (DNA; November 21, 2017)

While the world is turning upside down obsessing over Eleven and her gang in Stranger Things, actress Vidya Balan has chosen to remain a stranger to all that’s happening in the sleepy town of Hawkins. And it’s not just Stranger Things, Vidya admits to not watching a single episode of Game of Thrones, choosing to stay away from all the violence and gore from both Westeros and Mindhunter. On the occasion of World Television Day today, we got Vidya to tell us about the shows she loves, the roles she would like to essay and more.

ON BEING A STRANGER TO STRANGER THINGS
When quizzed about her favourite television shows/web series, Vidya shares, “I am heartbroken that we won’t be seeing another season of House Of Cards. I was crazy about Mad Men, too. I liked watching Downton Abbey, and Girls, and I absolutely love Narcos. I am not the Stranger Things sort of a person. I can’t watch it. I tried watching Black Mirror, but it’s extremely disturbing. I also tried watching Mindhunter. However, within the first five minutes, I just gave up. It’s too brutal. I don’t watch Game Of Thrones either. I tried watching it, but I found it too graphic. I can’t deal with all that violence.”

ON WANTING TO PLAY A DRUG PEDDLER
While Vidya is clear about the shows she won’t watch ever, she is also loyal to certain shows like the House of Cards and Narcos. In fact, when quizzed about the role she would like to essay from her favourite shows, without batting an eyelid, she says, “Pablo Escobar. I would love to do a Narcos, and play that character. I was actually offered a film about a lady drug peddler who is a big shot, but I didn’t do it. However, as a series, it might be very interesting, but then, now Narcos is already done. So, you don’t want to repeat the same thing but something like that or maybe a political drama. The only thing that has got me interested in politics is House of Cards. Another old interesting HBO series I saw was Six Feet Under. I thought the writing in that was brilliant. I would love to do a drama or a thriller. I also like True Detective a lot, which is an old show.”

Clearly, it’s drama and thrillers that appeal to Vidya as a viewer and an actor. We would like to see her in both.

Not just that, he also auditioned for a role inTrue Detective, made famous by Matthew McConaughey
Tushar Joshi (DNA; May 20, 2015)


Remembering his audition, Sid says, “I had read up for the part of Priyanka’s character Alex’s lover. I guess I didn’t get the part because they wouldn’t want two Indians opposite each other. But I have to tell you it was the best pilot script I had read. I did a talent show with ABC, which is why I got to read for a lot of parts for their shows. Quantico was by far their best!”

In an interview to After Hrs, PC recently spoke about the criticism she received when she made her debut on American television at a sports event. She received lot of flak on social media for being an Indian on an all-American show and was even labelled an ‘Arab terrorist.’ Is Sid ready for a similar backlash?

He says, “I won’t get nitpicked in the US, neither should she have. She probably was marketed as a Bollywood superstar, but I am not one, so I don’t come with that baggage. Sid Mallya, the name, could also be from anywhere in the world. I don’t traditionally look Indian. In fact, I had read for a Mexican’s part in HBO’s True Detective. They loved my audition, but I didn’t look like a gangster from any angle! A lot of people have said that I look ethnically ambiguous, so that works in my favour. I could play Mexican, Middle Eastern, Mediterranean. Probably the last thing I could play is Indian.” Sid will make his debut on the silver screen in an international production about the quizzers scene in the early ’80s in India.