Archie Panjabi
Archie Panjabi
Archana "Archie" Panjabi is a British actress, best known for her role as Kalinda Sharma on The Good Wife. Her portrayal has earned her a Primetime Emmy Award in 2010 and an NAACP Image Award in 2012, as well as two further Emmy nominations, one Golden Globe nomination, and three Screen Actors Guild Award nominations shared with the cast. Her other notable roles include Yasmin Husseini in Yasmin, Pinky Bhamra in Bend It Like Beckhamand Asra Nomani in A Mighty...
NationalityBritish
ProfessionTV Actress
Date of Birth31 May 1972
careers black acting
I went to Brunel University and very much wanted to go on to do a PhD in management, but then my acting career started to take off. In those days when you switched on the box there were hardly any brown or black faces.
believe play long
I like to do new things, so I always take on roles that I feel will keep me on my toes. I never want to pigeon myself, so I always like to surprise myself. I believe in versatility and so I would play anything as long as it was a challenge.
fighting thinking community
I think it is vital to fight to do something you want to do despite not gaining your community's or your friends' approval.
writing color people
When I started out in the '90s, there were not many people of color writing, directing and producing - hence, the roles for people of color were few and far between. There's still few roles in England [where she's from].
school thinking america
I remember sitting in school and thinking, 'I don't know why I'm here, because I know I'm going to act and I know I'm going to America.'
ambition parent supportive
Luckily my parents were not against my ambition, they've always been very supportive. But they were adamant that I went to university first.
heart names beckham
It was the success of 'Bend it Like Beckham' which got my name out there. 'A Mighty Heart' also helped.
character interesting may
I have been extremely proactive in putting myself up for characters that may have been meant to specifically be Caucasian. You bring an interesting angle to the character that isn't written.
love-you giving agents
You can have all the agents and publicists in the world but no one's ever going to give you 110 per cent like someone who loves you.
dialect-coach voice mysterious
I had a dialect coach to get an American accent, and then another dialect coach to come off it a bit. There is something deep and mysterious in the voice when it isn't too high-pitched American.
believe psychics needs
I've always been quite psychic and believe there's a reason why things happen and that we need to learn from them.
giving people challenges
A lot of the time, people want to hear from someone like myself. They want to give it a shot. It's challenging, and it's driven me more than discouraged me.
new-york believe home
Coming to New York is like a big hug, everyone is so welcoming. There's something about here, everyone makes you feel so at home. I miss my family of course, but I don't miss London that much. I was worried, but I feel really at home. Everyone says that who comes here from London, but I didn't believe them.
children careers parent
I knew from a young age that I wanted to be an actor. I never even thought about other careers. The acting field is certainly not the path many Indian parents encourage their children to take, but mine were very supportive. They wanted me to have an education, but understood that this is what I wanted to do.