How would you describe Virdee?

Virdee is a beautiful blend of genres. It’s the first time I’ve seen a series that combines a crime thriller with a family drama along with a heightened/Gotham-Esque storyline about gangland politics. I think it’s an exciting and adventurous way to tell the story. Beyond that, the story follows a cop who has been abandoned by his Sikh family for marrying the love of his life, Saima who is Muslim.

This feeling of abandonment and displacement is starting to reach the surface as his son is starting to get older and he’s starting to realise what that might mean for his son. Simultaneously, there is a serial killer who is systematically attacking the South Asian community and Bradford as a whole. Harry’s love for his family and his city will be challenged as he may only get to choose one.

What can you tell us about your character, Harry Virdee?

Harry is a man who will protect what he loves and who he loves at any cost. Every case is deeply personal to Harry, as his job is linked so deeply to his identity. He’s a man who leads with empathy and isn’t desensitised by the nature of his job. There’s also a wonderful line in the first book, Streets of Darkness, that describes Harry’s morals and it says, ‘the difference between right and wrong for Harry Virdee is as thin as a sheet of ice.’

This man lives by his own moral compass and his own moral code and will do whatever he has to do get the job done, even if that means surfing the line of the law.

What was it like meeting Amit for the first time? How was it working with him?

It’s quite a scary thing to meet the man who has been living with this story and this character for nearly two decades! For me, it was important to bond with Amit and get his blessing – that he felt I could tell this story and Bradford’s – and he very graciously did. After that, it was full steam ahead. It’s not an easy thing to translate a novel into a script but he did it phenomenally.

Not only that, but he gave space and room for the actors to have an open dialogue with him about how we can input and implement ourselves into it which took a level of trust that I really admire. It was a wonderful collaboration and I’m infinitely grateful to him. Spending time with him was invaluable to help me bring Harry Virdee to life.

What did you do to prepare for the role? It’s also quite a physical role, did you have to do any training to prepare for the stunts?

I was so blessed to take on this role of this size and with this level of legacy and cultural involvement, but it can feel quite daunting at first as there’s so much to understand, honour and respect. For me, I had to first and foremost find the similarities between myself and Harry and find where we meet and then embellish those characteristics – whether it’s his love for his family, but the complexity within the family dynamic, or his love for his wife and that being the most important thing, but that being coupled with the identity he finds from his job and how they clash.

I started with that and let it be the catalyst to keep everything moving. After that, it was understanding Bradford and spending time in the city and seeing people’s pride and sense of community there and how that is an integral part of the people of Bradford.

Physically, I actually ate a lot, which sounds counter intuitive. From reading Streets of Darkness and understanding the character, Harry Virdee is in his late 30s, he’s a father, he’s a husband who does nothing but work and then go home and love being a father and a husband. The book described him as burly, as more of a rugby-esque physique, so I was keen to make him more relatable.

Hollywood has a tendency to give everyone abs, but I didn’t think that was Harry Virdee. But at the same time the role is really physical, so I needed to make sure I maintained my fitness levels – in the opening scene Harry does a lot of running! For me, it was about eating the wonderful food in Bradford and working hard on his character.

What was it like filming in Bradford? Did you have any favourite locations?

I have so many favourite locations. One of the first scenes I did on the streets of Bradford is when Harry meets a local street dealer to find out where someone is. We were in the middle of nowhere filming down an alleyway and a lovely neighbour came by and offered us some chai, it was so lovely. This woman didn’t know us! In Saima’s dad’s house, the owner cooked for us. In the Virdee house, the owner and I sat and bonded.

Bradford was so welcoming, and everyone was so excited to part of it and understand what was going on, so I think that really inspired us all to continually put everything into it.

Are there any similarities between you and Harry?

Harry has a lot of love for his family, nothing is more important than his family to him and that’s the same for me. Harry’s job is also important to him and brings such a sense of identity in his life and brings a sense of purpose but there’s an inability to not bring it home. Your worlds have to collide, and you have to find a way to compartmentalise.

Harry is a father, a detective and a son, and the story starts when all these things are clashing. That’s something again that feels very honest and true about my own experience having to blend all these worlds and finding ways of not letting one take over the other and finding what is most important, even at the hardest of times, which is family to me.

How would you describe Harry’s relationship with Saima?

I think the amount of love he has for Saima should never be put into question. None of this deceit or the lies that exist within their relationship is because he doesn’t trust her. In terms of their relationship, there is one lie which is a burden he bears. Without giving too much away, it goes way deeper than Saima. It’s a secret that only he and one other person hold and when you start on a premise like that, it’s hard to undo that. You’re bonded with someone through horrific circumstances and it becomes too terrifying to share.

Beyond that, when we’re afraid we’ll lose someone who is so important we’ll protect them at any cost and sadly through shame or guilt, not that it’s the right thing to do, but you keep the secret from them. He thinks he’s protecting her and Aaron. The unit between Harry, Saima and Aaron is all that matters to him.

Tell us about the relationship Harry has with his family, particularly his mum and his dad.

Harry’s relationship with his family is fractured. The man that raised him has disowned him, relatively speaking, for marrying the women he loves. Losing your community is never easy and it feels like you’re losing your foundation in many ways. It’s not because of a lack of love; it’s because of pride and stubbornness. Harry is now a father himself and so he knows how it feels to love a child and it hurts him that his father was willing to throw it all away over something as simple as love.

I think his strength and softness comes from his mother. The conflict is between him and his father which has trickled down to an extent.

Harry sees a lot of himself in his niece, Tara. Like Harry, she’s relentless and she’ll do whatever she needs to get to the root of the problem. There’s a lot of symbiosis between him and Tara and he respects her for it, but he’s also scared for her because of that. He’s worried she’ll put herself into situations without thinking.

Why do you think people should watch Virdee?

There’s really something for everyone! If you like thrillers, high stakes and twists, it’s for you. If you like family drama that really delves into what we’re willing to do for those we love, the secrets we keep – then you’ve got that too. This is a show about Bradford peppered with the Hans Zimmer music and Batman/Gotham influence. It truly has something for everyone and I think what is really cool about Virdee is that it’s an almost all South Asian cast but it’s not a story about Asians for Asians. It’s a story about family, about love and loyalty – concepts that everyone understands and can relate to.