Poorna Jagannathan facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Poorna Jagannathan
Jagannathan
Born	(1972-12-22) December 22, 1972 (age 52) Tunis, Tunisia
Nationality	American
Education	University of Brasília University of Maryland, College Park (BA) Pace University
Occupation	Actress
Years active	2001–present
Spouse(s)	Azad Oommen ​ (m. 2003)​
Children	1

Poorna Jagannathan (born December 22, 1972) is an American actress and producer. You might know her as Dr. Nalini Vishwakumar, Devi's mom, in the Netflix comedy series Never Have I Ever. She also played Safar Khan in the HBO drama series The Night Of.

Besides acting, Poorna helped create and produce a powerful play called Nirbhaya. This play was about the importance of speaking out against violence toward women. It was praised as a very important moment for women's rights in India.

Poorna has been recognized for her positive impact. In 2021, 2022, and 2025, she was named one of the "Top 100 Most Impactful Asians" in America. People magazine also featured her in its 2024 “The Beautiful Issue.”

Early Life and Education

Poorna was born in Tunis, Tunisia. Her father was an Indian diplomat, so her family moved around a lot. She grew up in many different countries, including Pakistan, Ireland, India, Brazil, and Argentina. Because she lived in so many places, she can speak five languages: Tamil, Hindi, English, Spanish, and Portuguese.

For college, Poorna studied journalism at the University of Maryland, College Park. She later studied acting at the Actors Studio Drama School at Pace University in New York. Before becoming a full-time actress, she worked in advertising for 15 years.

Acting Career

Poorna has appeared in many popular TV shows and movies. She is well-known for both her serious and funny roles.

Famous Roles on Television

Poorna has had roles in shows like Big Little Lies, Better Call Saul, and Ramy. She also played an important character on an episode of The Blacklist.

Her role as Safar Khan in the HBO series The Night Of earned her great reviews. Critics said her performance was "heartbreaking" and that she showed a wide range of emotions with just her facial expressions.

Many people know Poorna for her comedic roles. Her part as Nalini Vishwakumar in Mindy Kaling's show Never Have I Ever was a huge hit. Critics praised her for playing a realistic and caring Indian-American mom. The show won the People's Choice Awards for its first three seasons.

Success in Movies

In 2011, Poorna starred in the Bollywood movie Delhi Belly. Critics loved her performance, calling her a "happy departure" from typical movie heroines. The movie was later named one of the top 25 Bollywood films of the 2010s.

She also acted in the A24 film Share, which was shown at the 2019 Sundance Film Festival. HBO bought the movie right after its first screening.

The Play Nirbhaya

In 2012, Poorna was deeply moved by a terrible act of violence against a woman in Delhi. In response, she helped create a play called Nirbhaya, which means "Fearless." The play was created to help break the silence surrounding violence against women.

Nirbhaya was first performed in 2013 at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in Scotland. It won several awards, including the Amnesty International Award. One newspaper called it "one of the most powerful and urgent pieces of human rights theatre ever made." The play was performed in many countries, including the United Kingdom, India, Canada, and the United States, and inspired many people.

Filmography

Key

Denotes productions that have not yet been released

Film

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
2004	Law & Order	Rehana Khemlani	Episode: "Veteran's Day"
2005	Jonny Zero	Dr. Shamira	Episode: "Who's Your Daddy"
	Starved	PJ	Episode: "The Breatharians"
2006	Love Monkey	Director	Episode: "Confidence"
	Rescue Me	Dr. Klein	Episode: "Satisfaction"
	Law & Order: Criminal Intent	Dr. Sikh	Episode: "Blind Spot"
2008	The Game	Dr. Diamond	Episode: "Just the Three of Us"
2009	Numb3rs	Tech #1	Episode: "Con Job"
2010–2011	Royal Pains	Saya	2 episodes
2015	House of Cards	Dr. Lanjawni	Episode: "Chapter 27"
2016	NCIS: Los Angeles	Dr. Nitya Agarwal	Episode: "Core Values"
	Rizzoli & Isles	Mrs. Jalbani	Episode: "Dangerous Curve Ahead"
	The Night Of	Safar Khan	7 episodes
2017	Law & Order: Special Victims Unit	Maya Samra	2 episodes
	Gypsy	Larin Inamdar	10 episodes
	Room 104	Divya (voice)	Episode: "The Internet"
	The Blacklist	Nirah Ahmad	Episode: "The Endling (No. 44)"
2018	Taken	Judith Chapman	Episode: "ACGT"
	Better Call Saul	Dr. Maureen Bruckner	2 episodes
	Sorry for Your Loss	Therapist	Episode: "17 Unheard Messages"
2019	The Act	Dr. Lakshmi Chandra	Episode: "Teeth"
	Ramy	Salma	2 episodes
	Big Little Lies	Katie Richmond	3 episodes
2020	Messiah	Sanjana Mirza	3 episodes
	Defending Jacob	Elizabeth Vogel	4 episodes
	The Wilds	Rana Jadmani	Episode: "Day Seven"
2020–2023	Never Have I Ever	Dr. Nalini Vishwakumar	40 episodes
2021–2023	Ten Year Old Tom	Rahul's Mom (voice)	6 episodes
2025	Deli Boys	Lucky	Main role
2026	Lanterns	Zoe	Upcoming series, recurring role

Awards and Recognition

Poorna has won many awards for her acting and activism. She is also a brand ambassador for People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), an organization that works to protect animals.

• For Delhi Belly (2012): She won the Stardust Award for Best Supporting Actress and the L'Oreal Femina Award for Breakthrough Performance.
• For Nirbhaya (2013): The play won the Amnesty International Freedom of Expression Award, the Scotsman Fringe First Award, and the Herald Angel Award.
• For her impact: She was named one of the top 100 Most Impactful Asians by Goldhouse in 2021 and 2022. In 2014, Verve magazine named her one of the 50 most powerful women in India.

See also

In Spanish: Poorna Jagannathan para niños