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Maitreyi Ramakrishnan is a Canadian actress playing the lead role in Never Have I Ever, a coming-of-age drama series created by Mindy Kaling and Lang Fisher. The show follows the complicated life of Maitreyi's character, Devi Vishwakumar, a first-generation Indian-American teenager.
The first and second seasons of the series premiered on Netflix in April 2020 and July 2021 respectively. The 10-episode-long third season is set to be released on August 12, 2022, with the fourth and final season scheduled to be released in 2023.
In the first season, Maitreyi's 15-year-old Devi avoids facing the trauma of her father’s recent death by focusing on getting a boyfriend, and in the second season, she goes overboard with not one, but two boyfriends. The series follows her journey through the ups and downs of high school with her mother, Dr. Nalini Vishwakumar (played by Poorna Jagannathan), and her two best friends, Eleanor Wong (played by Ramona Young) and Fabiola Torres (played by Lee Rodriguez), by her side.
Maitreyi Ramakrishnan is also a voice actor who has voiced Priya Mangal in Disney's Turning Red, an animated story about a 13-year-old Chinese-Canadian student, Mei Lee, who transforms into a giant red panda whenever she experiences any strong emotion, owing to a hereditary curse. Priya is one of Mei's best friends.
Check out these lesser-known facts about Maitreyi Ramakrishnan before you catch her on the third season of Never Have I Ever on August 12.
5 lesser-known facts about Maitreyi Ramakrishnan
1) She is Canadian-Tamil
Maitreyi Ramakrishnan was born and raised in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada, but she dearly values her Tamil heritage. Her parents were forced to flee to Canada as refugees during the Sri Lankan civil war. Due to the impact of the Sri Lankan civil war on its Tamil citizens, she consciously identifies as Tamil rather than Sri Lankan.
2) She started acting at the age of 15
Never Have I Ever's Devi Vishwakumar is Maitreyi’s first professional role, but she got her start in acting at the age of 15 when she got a role in her school's production of Footloose. The role made her fall in love with acting, and she continued to audition for plays at her school.
3) She got her big break due to her best friend
Like her character, Devi, who has the support of two amazing best friends, Eleanor and Fabiola, in her life, Maitreyi Ramakrishnan also has the support of an equally amazing best friend in her real life.
Ramakrishnan's best friend is the one who spotted an open casting call on Instagram for Mindy's show. Maitreyi then sent in an audition tape which she filmed on her mother's camera at a local library with the help of her best friend. Eventually, she had to submit four more tapes before she received an invitation to LA. She was ultimately selected by Mindy from a pool of 15,000 actresses after a couple of screen tests.
4) She is the one who wrote Devi's catchphrase
Devi's catchphrase in Never Have I Ever, “What's poppin?”, was introduced to the character by Maitreyi as she uses the catchphrase with her own friends all the time.
5) She's a big fan of The Office and its cast
The Office is a mockumentary sitcom depicting the everyday work lives of office employees at the Scranton, Pennsylvania branch of the fictional Dunder Mifflin Paper Company. Maitreyi Ramakrishnan is a big fan of the show and its actors, which means getting the chance to work with Mindy was a dream come true moment for her. She has always looked up to Mindy and her characters as they resemble her heritage.
Maitreyi's favorite actor is Steve Carrell, and she hopes that she will get the chance to work with him someday.
Be sure to tune in to Netflix to watch the premiere of Never Have I Ever Season 3 on Friday, August 12!
