Having found fame as Jess in the 2002 football comedy Bend It Like Beckham, Parminder Nagra is back in her biggest role since in ITV's gritty crime drama, DI Ray, as it returns to screens with its second season. The 48-year-old, who gained international notoriety for playing Neela Rasgotra in US hospital drama ER, stars as DI Rachita Ray in the Birmingham-based crime series produced by Line of Duty creator Jed Mercurio and penned by writer Maya Sondhi – who fans will recognise as PC Maneet Bindra in the BBC police show.
Sitting down with HELLO! in a joint interview with writer Maya, Parminder revealed what fans can expect from season two, her "intense" scene with co-star Jamie Bamber – aka Ray's corrupt fiancé DCI Martyn Hunter – and why the crime drama marks a "milestone" for primetime TV.
Plus, the mum-of-one, who moved to Los Angeles after landing her ER role, shared why now might be the right time to move back home.
Where do we find DI Ray in season two after Martyn's betrayal?
Parminder: "A bit battered and bruised by the whole experience of being in love with someone and then that falling apart. Being called back into work, she's not very trusting of anybody because of what's happened. And what is this going to look like? I think that's how it starts for her and making sure that she's got her eye on the ball, that it's about the work and nothing else."
Maya: "We just wanted to make sure that it's a fresh series. It's standalone. This woman has been through some stuff, but you don't want it to all be about that and don't want her to be broken the whole time.
"You want to see that she is battling with some stuff while she's trying to get this case solved. I think it was really important to not wipe it clean and start fresh like nothing's ever happened, which often happens in telly."
What was it like reuniting with Jamie Bamber and filming the tense prison scene?
Parminder: "Me and Jamie work quite well together anyway. There's a shorthand as actors, there's no major discussion that's happening.
"It's almost two years since we did the first series as well, but we just picked up from where we left off, and that scene itself, it's a little bit goose pimple-y because you're going back to meet this man that you were in love with and probably still have those feelings because they don't just suddenly disappear.
"[It shows] what it's like to be gas-lit. One of the crew was saying, 'God, that scene is a lesson in when you see a toxic relationship and how some people can get sucked right back into it because they know their Achilles heel'.
"It affects Rachita and of course, the things he says about her hit her in the gut, but she's a step ahead and she knows to get out of there. It was nice to play those complicated feelings because I just think that's what life is, actually. It's messy.
"It was really intense and it was quite a long scene."
Racism and tokenism are themes in the series. Parminder, you've spoken about your experiences before. Did filming this remind you of your previous experiences or help you relate to DI Ray?
Parminder: "I think what makes me relate to Rachita is I just want to do my job. I don't want to keep talking about it and I think that's what happens in the show as well. That part gets mirrored because I just actually want to do my job and that's it and she says that as well."
Did filming this feel like a bit of a turning point or a milestone?
Parminder: "I think it's a milestone having a female South Indian lead on primetime TV, which you just don't see very often, if at all, really. I think that's massive. For me, it is a milestone. But I think what was more important in series two is that we weren't bashing people over the head with it. That was a really important thing to show."
Maya: "I think the race, tokenism, the microaggressions and identity is the DNA of the show but it shouldn't be what the show is solely. It's got to be this excellent policewoman who is trying to solve this very complex crime whilst dealing with her leading a team, dealing with her superiors - who aren't always the best - and I think that's that was key, just to make sure that it doesn't feel preachy. But you also couldn't wipe that out, otherwise it's just another crime drama. So just finding the balance was really key."
Parminder, you live in LA. Was it nice to be back in the UK?
Parminder: "Yeah. Logistically it gets difficult, with having a kid, so you have to try and make that work. But last summer was lovely with proper hot days. It was nice to be back, and it's a good excuse just to come back and see everybody."
Would you ever move back?
Parminder: "Yeah. I can feel that slowly starting to happen. A lot of my work has been over in England over the last few years."
Would you do series 3?
Parminder: "I mean, we don't know. I guess we just have to watch this space. But if they did, then absolutely, yeah."
The second series of DI Ray is on ITV1 and ITVX 20, 21 and 22 October at 9pm. The series concludes the following week.