Agastya Nanda, grandson of Bollywood legends Amitabh Bachchan and Jaya Bachchan, made his acting debut last year with The Archies. The adaptation of the iconic comic for streaming giant Netflix was directed by Zoya Akhtar and features Agastya Nanda as Archie Andrews. In a new interview with Film Companion, Agastya Nanda shared that he had auditioned for the role in The Archies and has often visited filmmakers at their offices in quest for more work. He also added that no one knew how he looked before his debut since he was not present on social media and grew up in Delhi, away from the world of cinema. Being an unfamiliar face in film circles also led to some hilarious moments, Agastya said, including being mistaken for a delivery agent at a filmmaker's office.
Sharing the experience, Agastya Nanda said, “I had gone to another office where the security guard was like, ‘Idhar aa, idhar aa (come here).' He said, ‘Naam likh. Package delivery time bata. (Write down your name and the delivery time of the package).' I said I've not come here to deliver the package, I've come here to meet the director. Then he said, ‘Nahi nahi, jhooth mat bol (No, don't lie).' This happens quite a lot. The disadvantages of not having social media.” It may be noted that Agastya Nanda has now joined social media, sharing his maiden Instagram post on Thursday [January 11].
Agastya Nanda also shared another anecdote where he was made to wait at a filmmaker's office for 45 minutes only to overhear the staff discuss why Agastya had not turned up yet. He added that he had to then explain to them that he was Agastya and that he had been waiting for close to an hour.
Along with Agastya Nanda, The Archies was headlined by fellow debutants Suhana Khan, Khushi Kapoor, Vedang Raina, Aditi "Dot" Saigal and Yuvraj Menda. Mihir Ahuja, who has worked in shows such as Made In Heaven 2, was also part of the primary cast.
On the work front, Agastya Nanda will be seen next in Ikkis by Sriram Raghavan.