Half-Indian hotties scorch the screen

While successful Indian actors crossing over to Hollywood and US actors of exclusively Indian origin constantly make headlines, one rarely sees actors of mixed heritage (part-Indian) being spoken of, as frequently. This despite them being as prolific — if not more — than their counterparts.

Take, for example, the pretty Annet Mahendru. She was born in Kabul, Afghanistan to a Russian mother and Indian father. Best known for her work in TV show, The Americans where she plays a Russian spy, she has a film releasing this week— Penguins of Madagascar. In the film, she lends her voice to Eva, a Russian snow owl who’s also an intelligence analyst, a no-nonsense brainy beauty. The two characters share little in common. “Well, Eva can fly, for one thing,” jokes the actress.

Then there’s Indira Varma. She’s half-Indian half-Swiss and is from the UK. More prolific, she is best known for her role in Kama Sutra: A Tale of Love, TV series Rome and most recently, Game of Thrones. She has a film coming up in a few weeks — Christian Bale-starrer Exodus: Gods and Kings. In the film, berated for its casting choices, she plays Moses’ sister Miriam, a significant part of the oft-told story of Moses, who led Israelites from slavery to freedom.