Annet Mahendru on That Powerful Penultimate Episode of ‘The Romanoffs’ [Exclusive Interview]

Annet Mahendru plays the role of Elena Evanovich on that significant episode in Russia, The Romanoffs Season 1 Episode 7, “End of the Line,” with Kathryn Hahn and Jay R. Ferguson, an American couple looking to adopt a Russian child.

Perhaps the most mysterious of characters on the show and episode, Elena is the middleman between the couple and the Russian adoption agency–and we’re left wondering so much more.

We had a few questions for Mahendru about her experiences on the show, why it was different from other projects, and what keeps her grounded as a person and performer.

Tell-Tale TV: How has your personal experience, background, and identity shaped you as a person and an actor?

Annet Mahendru: That’s a big question! We’re an accumulation of our experiences, and acting allows me to speed through someone else’s lifetime and pile it on top my own (whether I like it or not, that’s the catch). So my real and pretend lives are very much intertwined. It’s a school of life; I get to be an eternal student!

More specifically, I think because I am multicultural and got to grow up equally in Russian and Indian lifestyles, it possibly really adds to my characters’ unconventional way of being. People always ask me which side I was on when I played so and so. My parents come from such opposite traditions that being raised by such polar extremes makes me feel a sense of freedom to be everywhere in between.

Tell-Tale TV: The Romanoffs Season 1 Episode 7, “End of the Line” is such an intriguing personal story that raises a lot of questions of morality, and your character seems to straddle the gray area. What drew you to this specific role, and where do you see your character’s alignment leaning?

Mahendru: I heard there was a show being made about the Russian royal family and I told my team: “I hope they cast a Russian in this!” Then Laura Schiff in casting advocated for me, and so did Matthew Weiner. When the script came to me I was in awe by Elena’s unusual circumstances in which she creates families.

What made it even more special is that when I met the writers, Maria and Andre Jacquemetton, I learned that they had actually been to Vladivostok some 20 years back and adopted a baby girl of their own! They told me how complicated the process was for many reasons and how grateful they were for their liaison.

I see Elena as a midwife in the adoption process. She’s got to get in there any way she can to deliver the baby! So there is some real live version of Elena out there, surviving by the only means she knows and most importantly keeping kids safely off the streets. I think that’s amazing.

Tell-Tale TV: How was it working with Kathryn Hahn? With you two playing vastly different characters with different viewpoints, how did you approach working as scene partners?

Mahendru: I love that Elena doesn’t sympathize too much with the couple, played by Kathryn Hahn and Jay R. Ferguson, because she knows in America everything will be okay, and figures they are spoiled. My favorite scene was the standoff between them and Elena when the adoption process comes to a halt.

There was a lot of emotion coming up in the situation for everyone and pushing from Matt. It was mostly the three of us all together throughout the episode, which created a really fun trio of female and male tension.

I like to spend time in the world of the characters I take on, so in between takes I don’t fool around too much and tend to keep to the director and myself. We joked around and had a good time but mostly had to attend to the serious business at hand.

Tell-Tale TV: How did The Romanoffs differ from other projects you’ve done, given that it’s an anthology series and involving a variety of different people working on different parts of one whole project?

Mahendru: We filmed for a month in Romania and mostly on location. There were no rehearsals, but it felt very immersed and intense. Matt is so hands-on and detail-oriented, that it felt, in many ways, more like a movie than a show. He really crafted every bit of this.

Only once press began did all the other actors from the other episodes end up in one room together. After all, we were all connected in this disconnected way, just like the premise of The Romanoffs itself. And we were all equally thrilled to be there with Matt, which was really cute!

Tell-Tale TV: What was the most rewarding part of working on the show?

Mahendru: Connecting the story. The czars were known for their very loving and tender relationship with each other. Their marriage of 23 years was often referred to as a 23-year-long honeymoon. In turn, the show explores relationships in every way possible; puts them on the forefront, boldly testing them.

Matt warned it was about love. I found it very much to be about the cycle of finding and losing it and thus learning how to keep it better.

Tell-Tale TV: What kind of stories do you want to explore next through your work?

Mahendru: I’ve been lucky to be part of great storytelling. I want to continue to transform. There is no end to transformation and our ability to do so.

In essence, all stories are the same, it’s the people’s perspectives of their experiences that make them different. And those change, too, over time. Luckily.

Tell-Tale TV: What advice do you have for actors and artists, based on your own experience and expertise?

Mahendru: To be assertive is healthy, but remember, we are here to do it together. And what a relief that is!

Tell-Tale TV: And when you’re not busy acting, how do you like to spend your time?

Mahendru: I really like warm stuff: to feel a hot cup of tea in my hands, hit up the Korean saunas, sit in the sun and paint my nails, savor in my husband’s hot-off-the-stove cooking, breastfeed our son. The fun friction of activity and people getting together.

—

The Romanoffs just finished airing, but you can still watch Annet Mahendru on “End of the Line” and see all of the episodes on Amazon Prime Video.  

You can also follow Mahendru on Twitter and Instagram.

*Featured image credit: Ginny Tucker

Want more from Tell-Tale TV? Subscribe to our newsletter here!

19 Most Compelling TV Villains of 2018