'South Asians Need More Representation', Says 'Never Have I Ever' Actress Maitreyi Ramakrishnan

Desis from across the world sang praises for American-Indian coming of age series Never Have I Ever. Season 2 of the show, which was highly relatable as well as progressive, is out.

Maitreyi Ramakrishnan, a Sri Lankan-Canadian, who plays the lead role in the film, became an overnight sensation after the release of the show.

Netflix

Did you know she was selected from about 15000 people who auditioned for the role of Devi Vishwakumar? After the successful debut, the 19-year-old says that South Asians need more representation, especially in the lead role.

"I think the reason why people like the show is because we haven’t seen South Asians take the lead role as often as they should. It’s happened before, I’m sure, and most of the time it’s because they make that space for themselves," she said citing the example of show’s co-creator Kaling, who also wrote and starred in The Mindy Project and Late Night.

"But that’s not enough. We need more representation and need to see more South Asians take those lead roles because clearly there is a market for it, and a want for it," she was quoted as saying by PTI.

In the second season of the series, narrated by tennis player John McEnroe, Devi is trying to double date Ben and Paxton as her mother Dr Nalini (played by Poorna Jagannathan) prepares to shift base to India.?