Poorna Jagannathan Profile
Poorna Jagannathan is an Indian American Producer and Actress. She is popularly known for her role as Safar Khan in the HBO drama miniseries The Night Of as well as for her role as Nalini Vishwakumar in the Netflix teen comedy series Never Have I Ever.
Poorna Jagannathan Age
Jagannathan is 51 years old as of 2023. She was born on 22nd December 1972 in Tunis, Tunisia. Additionally, she celebrates her birthday on 22nd December every year.
Poorna Jagannathan Height
Jagannathan stands at an average height of 5 feet 7 inches tall.
Poorna Jagannathan Family
She is the daughter of Indian diplomat Jagannathan, Poorna was born in Tunis, Tunisia. She grew up in Pakistan, Ireland, India, Brazil, and Argentina. Jagannathan speaks Tamil, Hindi, English, Spanish, and Portuguese.
Poorna Jagannathan Education
She attended the University of Brasília before graduating in journalism from the University of Maryland, College Park. On a scholarship, she studied toward a Master of Fine Arts in acting at the Actors Studio Drama School at Pace University. Although she dropped out after the first year, she continued to study acting under her mentor, Elizabeth Kemp, whom she met there.
Poorna went on to train at The Barrow Group where she is currently a board and company member. Before her career as an actor, Poorna spent 15 years working in advertising at agencies like TBWA\Worldwide, Ogilvy, and Deutsch Inc. before starting her consultancy, Cowgirls & Indians.
Poorna Jagannathan Children
Jagannathan has a son named Anav Oommen, who seems to be around 10-15 years old; she has shared a few pictures of his boy on her social networking sites.
Poorna Jagannathan Husband
Jagannathan is a married woman who tied the knot with the love of her life Azad Oommen. Having an Indian background, she has had a traditional wedding but hasn’t shared her wedding pictures on the internet. Poorna and Azad have been together for 21 years and happily married for 19 years; they took the wedding vows while committing to spend the rest of their lives together until their last breath in 2003.
Furthermore, the actress was the one who made the first move by saying I Love You to the boy of her dreams on their first date. However, she felt embarrassed and said those words to everyone in the room so that he wouldn’t feel special. The couple eventually fell in love built a simple yet full of extraordinarily beautiful life together and started a family.
Poorna Jagannathan Never Have I Ever
She is currently a series regular on Mindy Kaling’s new show Never Have I Ever, which released its first season with a 100% and its second season with a 97% score on Rotten Tomatoes from its Top Critics. Poorna’s performance as Nalini Vishwakumar was lauded by critics and her nuanced portrayal of an immigrant woman has been regarded as groundbreaking and a first for television.
Sonia Saraiya from Vanity Fair said, “I’ve seen a lot of actors attempt to flesh out the stereotypically demanding Indian mom, but I’ve never seen anyone do it as well as Jagannathan does… It’s the little things: the nearly untraceable Indian accent, the mumbled exclamations in a different language,
Poorna Jagannathan Podcasts
The slight gestures and paranoiac side-eyes of the Indian aunty, the seemingly effortless bridging of the paradox between ancient tradition and modern necessity. “Jinal Bhatt from Mashable.com wrote, “Poorna Jagannathan has been a revelation in this series, and I’d say she puts forth one of the best portrayals of Indian-American mothers we’ve seen.
Some of the #JustMomThings she says penetrate through the screen and hit you while you watch! But her dynamic with Devi is beautiful in the subtext.” John Anderson from The Wall Street Journal said that she “is a hilarious mix of Indian tradition, widowhood, creeping Americanization and the flat delivery of a sentencing judge.” Delia Cai from Vanity Fair says, “By following Nalini’s story beyond the basic assimilation arc and exploring her character via universal themes of parenting.
Loss, and intergenerational family ties, we get a fully three-dimensional character who is easily the best part of the show.” In 2018, Poorna lent her voice to three podcasts in the Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls series, based on The New York Times Best Seller list books by Elena Favilli and Francesca Cavallo. She read the stories of Mary Kom, Margaret Hamilton, and Madam C. J. Walker.
Poorna Jagannathan “India’s 50 most beautiful women”
Poorna was featured among the top 10 in Femina magazine’s “India’s 50 most beautiful women” in 2012 as well as being named by Vogue India as one of 8 Indian women changing the face of beauty. In 2014, Jagannathan was named among the top 50 most powerful women in India. She was named among the “Top 100 Most Impactful Asians” by Gold House in 2021 and then again in 2022. She is an occasional contributor to CNN Opinions.
Poorna Jagannathan Career
Poorna has appeared on several TV shows like Big Little Lies, Better Call Saul, and Ramy. She played Blacklister #44 on The Blacklist and appeared as the guest leads on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit for their 18th year’s double-season-finale episodes.
In 2017, she played one of the leads in A24’s film Share. Share premiered at the 2019 Sundance Film Festival, winning Best Screenplay and Best Actor, and was immediately acquired by HBO. Furthermore, Poorna won critical acclaim for her role as a spunky, irreverent journalist in the 2011 Bollywood film Delhi Belly.
The Village Voice said that “the most enjoyably subversive element is Poorna Jagannathan as the self-sufficient bachelorette who waylays Tashi on his way to the altar. Rangy, corkscrew-haired, with a wary demeanor that can’t long be upset by anything. ” Mumbai Mirror said, “Poorna Jagannathan, an offbeat choice, is remarkably subtle and does a brilliant job.”
The Daily News and Analysis said that Poorna shines in the film. And that “her bohemian sex appeal” is “a refreshing change. ” The editor of Outlook Lounge said that Poorna’s performance was a “masterclass in effortless acting”. In 2019, Delhi Belly was named one of the top 25 Bollywood movies of the decade by FilmCompanion.
Poorna Jagannathan HBO show
In 2012, Deadline.com reported that Poorna had joined the cast of the HBO show The Night Of as a series regular. Her performance in The Night Of received rave reviews. Vinnie Mancuso of the Observer wrote, “Poorna Jagannathan, who has been putting in one of the year’s most heartbreaking performances, continues to shine…..” Vikram Murthi from Vulture wrote, “Poorna Jagannathan’s subtle performance shines …. Her facial reactions convey such a profound array of emotions.”Variety’s Sonia Saraiya wrote that her performance was “quietly devastating”.
In September 2016, it was announced that Poorna had joined the cast of Gypsy as a series regular. The Netflix-produced series was led by Naomi Watts but was not renewed for another season. In May 2018, Deadline announced that Poorna had joined the cast of the HBO series Big Little Lies as a recurring character named Katie Richmond.
Kathryn VanArendonk of Vulture wrote, “But Jagannathan’s Divya is even better. Even without a physical presence, Divya is still immediately recognizable as a character. At times she’s breezily unconcerned, at other moments, she’s sharply chastising her son for his brusqueness. Her delivery is the bedrock of the episode’s sense of humor.”
Poorna Jagannathan Nirbhaya
Moved by the gang rape and murder in Delhi on December 16, 2012, Poorna initiated, produced, and acted in a testimonial play called Nirbhaya (transl. Fearless, a pseudonym given to the victim). The play uses the rape and death of Jyoti Singh Pandey to break the silence around sexual violence. Poorna collaborated with internationally acclaimed playwrights and director, Yaël Farber, to build the play.
Nirbhaya opened at the Assembly Hall in August 2013 during the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. It won the coveted 2013 Amnesty International Award as well as the Scotsman Fringe First and Herald Angel Awards. And received excellent reviews from leading publications.
The Sunday Herald called Nirbhaya “One of the most powerful and urgent pieces of human rights theatre ever made”. In March 2014, Nirbhaya was the centerpiece performance for Southbank. “Women of the World” festival where it played to sold-out houses in the UK.
Poorna Jagannathan The New York Times Critics
After a successful Kickstarter campaign to fund an India tour. Additionally, Nirbhaya opened to critical acclaim in India on March 17, 2014. Playing to sold-out houses in Mumbai, Delhi, and Bangalore. In August 2014, The Guardian audiences voted Nirbhaya among the top 10 “best fringe moments” in the Edinburgh Festival’s history. Nirbhaya opened to rave reviews at The Culture Project in New York City.
In May 2015 and rose to become The New York Times Critics’ Pick. Additionally, the play toured for three years in multiple cities in Ireland, Canada, the UK, India, and the U.S. Furthermore, many reviewers stated that it was one of the most political and deeply moving pieces of theater ever made. “Nirbhaya” is considered one of the most impactful moments in India’s history of the women’s empowerment movement.
Poorna Jagannathan Movies and TV shows
- She hates me as Song’s girlfriend.
- Awake as Dr.Neyer’s nurse.
- Delhi Belly as Menaka Vashisht.
- Alia’s birth was Jaime.
- Law and Order as Rehana Khemlani.
- House of cards as Dr. Lanjawni.
- Gypsy as Larin Inamdar.
- The Blacklist as Nirah Ahmad.
- Big Little Lies as Katie Richmond.
- Sorry for your loss as a Therapist.
Poorna Jagannathan Awards
Grazia awarded Jagannathan the “Best Dressed Award” for 2014
In 2014, Verve magazine named her among the top 50 most powerful women in India
Vogue included her in their list of most stylish women in 2012, 2014 and 2015
She is on Elle magazine’s Hot 100 list for 2011
She is Most Fashionable Indian Woman by Cosmopolitan in their October 2013 and 2012 issues
Poorna Jagannathan Net Worth
Jagannathan has an estimated annual Net Worth of $ 1 million to $5 million earned from her career as a Producer and Actress.
Poorna Jagannathan Social Media Platforms
Jagannathan is very active on her Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook pages. She has 18.9k followers on Twitter, 398k followers on Instagram,m and 1k followers on Facebook.