I have always let the lack of Indian actors in the industry drive me, not hold me back. I remember an agent in L.A. telling me a few years ago that an Indian actor wouldn't ever make it in Hollywood, but my ethnicity has helped me.

I think it is vital to fight to do something you want to do despite not gaining your community's or your friends' approval.

Since I was a baby my goal was to be on TV because film was just impossible - you never got any Asian women in Western cinema. I grew up wanting to be in 'East-Enders' because film wasn't even a dream. The community were very much like, 'How can you want to act? It's such a low-class profession.

Sometimes my ethnicity is relevant, other times not. I definitely get the best of both worlds.

I feel like I have one foot in New York, one foot in London and one foot in India. But it's important to me to invest time with family.

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].

And I'd love to direct. One day. I'm learning a lot on the set of The Good Wife.