Ankur Rathee on Struggling to Land Indian Roles Because of His Accent: ‘It Was Hard to Hide My American Identity’ (EXCLUSIVE)

Ankur Rathee stars alongside Maitreyi Ramakrishnan and Priyanka Kedia in the American comedy dance film “Best of the Best.” The film spotlights the South Asian-American community in the US, against the backdrop of college dance teams.

Born in Haryana, Rathee divides his time between India and the US as he pursues his acting career. He has featured in projects such as “Four More Shots Please!,” “Made in Heaven” and “Undekhi,” and was most recently seen in "Single Papa." He now plays Ronak in the Hasan Minhaj production “Best of the Best.”

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In an exclusive conversation with Variety India, he speaks about landing Indian projects while honing his American diction to sound more Indian. Rathee notes that the West is ready to accept people from different backgrounds and see them as different from the characters they play, while that may not be the case in India. “Some of the most successful actors in Hollywood are British or Australian, and we don’t bat an eye. We completely believe that, regardless of how they speak, they can embody characters from different backgrounds. In India, there has often been a lack of understanding of what it means to play characters different from yourself.” 

Reflecting on how most of the characters he has played in India have been Indian-born or brought up in the country, Rathee says overcoming perceptions about his identity has been a challenge. “It was hard to hide my American identity from producers and directors here, because their perception became a roadblock to even having an opportunity to embody those characters. A producer or director might think, ‘How is this guy, who’s got such an American demeanor, going to play a guy from Haryana?’ But you’d be mistaken, because my whole family is from Haryana,” he adds.

Directed by Lena Khan, “Best of the Best,” which was released on Netflix on September 18, also stars Chaneil Kular, Lilly Singh, Janina Gavankar and Hasan Minhaj.