Internet is not impressed with NRI character's bad Hindi accent in Pluribus: ‘What is she even saying?’

Menik Gooneratne features in Apple TV's new sci-fi series Pluribus, where she plays Laxmi. Many on social media have reacted to her scene.

Pluribus, the new show from Breaking Bad-creator Vince Gilligan, has been the toast of social media for the past few weeks. In the show, Sri Lankan-Australian actress and writer Menik Gooneratne plays the role of Laxmi. In the latest episode of the show, her Hindi accent during a tense moment has drawn a lot of reactions on social media. Many shared that the Hindi accent sounded off, while others said it is exactly the point because she has stayed away, and that is the reason it has become accentuated.

How internet reacted

Pluribus is created by Vince Gilligan.

A user posted on Threads, “Massive Hollywood productions, but they can’t find one Indian actor who can speak in Hindi? What is she even saying?” In response, someone wrote, “Just saw this scene and yup, very powerful characterisation /setup ruined by the dialogue. Surely they could have let the actor speak in an Indic language they’re comfortable with? Not like this needed subtitles.” Another agreed and wrote, “In most cases, American casting will claim ‘the best actor wins the role’, but with Indian casting, the sentiment is always ‘no one will know the difference’. No shade to Menik Gooneratne who is doing her best but this is just plain lazy on the part of the producers.”