Manpreet Bambra on Count Abdulla
- What does starring in CA mean to you?
Starring in Count Abdulla means a lot to me, and is very personal for me as a British Asian Actress. My last significant role prior to Count Abdulla, I was playing a character 10 years my junior, so it was difficult for me to be reintroduced into the industry as an adult, let’s say. For me, my role as Amrita, resonates more with my twenties, as well as being an Asian actress who grew up in a strict Sikh household and originally from Southall. Count Abdulla is a series that portrays characters that so many individuals from the Asian community can relate to. As a whole there is just a lot of diversity in this show. Majority of us actors were familiar with each other from the industry, so to put us all together and create something so great, well, it has not been done like this before. I mean a ‘halal eating vampire’, have you ever heard of that before? It is such a great concept and I am so honored to be a part of Kaamil Shah’s (Writer) work.
2. Was it difficult to portray the personality of your character in the series?
It was not difficult to portray the personality of Amrita, as I remember reading the script laughing and thinking there are so many similarities. She loves horror, and I have a weird thing. I love getting scared. I love horror movies. She cares about her friends and family. She’s passionate about what she loves, but she has a fiery, wild side to her, rebellious even. I always say there are so many layers to her character. Having turned 30 last year, you really do look back at your twenties, and realize you were just trying to figure out who you are, learning to accept it and embrace it. Going for what you want. She is a powerful, strong woman to portray, and I loved taking on that job.
3. Does any scene from CA surpass your expectations, and if so, why?
So many of the scenes surpassed my expectations. We have an incredible cast and crew behind this show. So much talent. I mean you read a script and have your imagination but seeing it come to life was a whole other thing. There is so much creativity portrayed in the series. I have so many to list, so without giving any spoilers, I will leave you with two mentions. One being – wait till you see Kathy’s Flat and the scenes that take place in there! Elena, our production designer smashed it! The second being the wedding surprise, which FYI, i had to dance in. I have taken one bollywood class in my 30 years, and it was the most challenging day for me, so i really look forward to seeing if i get approval for my bollywood dancing.
4. Do you have a favourite dialogue from the series? If so, what does the dialogue mean
to you.
My favourite dialogue from the series would be a scene between Amrita and her Father, where she finally takes the courage to be honest about who she really is. You can see he is more worried about keeping up appearances with the relatives and community, and she has just had enough of ‘living her life for other people’. In my real life I went to university and studied a 4 year science degree in Cosmetic Science. My passion and dream, however, was always acting. I did the degree to have a back up plan but also to please my family more so. After graduating, which was 8 years ago now, I made the decision to fully pursue acting, which was tough for family members to grasp hold of. Leaving a full time job and security, to pursue a career that is not so stable and full of a lot of rejection. When you love what you do, you can’t just give that up. So for me that was the time in my life where I stopped living my life for other people, and decided to choose what makes me happy despite the rollercoaster that comes with it.