Canada-born Indian actor Celine Joseph, who made a notable acting debut with Prithviraj Sukumaran's 2018 film Ranam, is set to take her next big step into Hollywood. She is debuting with Doin' It, a comedy, set for theatrical release in the United States on September 19. For Celine, whose family immigrated over 30 years ago, this Hollywood entry is more than just another film role. "When I grew up in Canada, there was nobody of our colour on screen, and it was hard fitting into the society here. But recently, with people like Priyanka Chopra, Mindy Kaling, and Lilly Singh doing amazingly well, it's inspiring, not just for us, but also for the young girls and boys growing up. As someone who has always been proud of my roots and culture, it feels great to represent India in mainstream media."
Doin' It has Celine playing the younger version of the protagonist Maya, played by Lilly Singh, a 30-year-old virgin who gets a job as a high school sex education teacher. Celine, who bagged the role through auditions, says, "Ever since Ranam, I've been auditioning, right from Marvel projects to Netflix shows. Finally glad to have got this film, which is about a woman figuring out her body. Lilly Singh, who has also co-written, is a huge icon in comedy, and the director Sara Zandieh, an Iranian woman, is a fabulous talent. I was excited to learn that the film is being produced by Likely Story, the same production company that backed Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, one of my all-time favourites. With so many incredible talents around, including intimacy coordinators who ensure our comfort throughout, it was a great learning experience."
While India is still debating the need for sex education in schools, Celine says her growing-up years in Canada and exposure to such conversations right from a young age helped her ease into Maya's character and the film's core objective. Expressing hope that it will raise awareness among the younger generation, she says, "I believe the film will help start a positive discourse around the topic of sex. Here, by the time you are in 6th grade, you have sex education classes which destigmatise sex, help both boys and girls understand body parts, and make us aware of safe sex. It gives us a fair understanding of puberty, menstruation, and the changes that we go through at a certain age. But in India, I think there aren't many such conversations. We already have a huge population, which is one reason why we are here. So there is no shame in talking about your body or how to have safe sex. What's supposed to be an enjoyable experience should not be a means to get assaulted or exposed to diseases."
Celine, an undergraduate in psychology, remembers being bitten by the film bug from a very young age. A huge fan of Christopher Nolan, Martin Scorsese, and Padmarajan, Celine's inclination was naturally towards filmmaking rather than acting. Pursuing her filmmaking ambitions, Celine joined director Jeethu Joseph, a distant relative, as his assistant in the 2016 film Oozham. The whole experience turned out to be an eye-opener as it helped her realise the challenges in filmmaking. "Working as an AD in Oozham made me realise that it's a tough job. I also had conversations with Prithvi chettan, who explained to me about the importance of knowing every aspect of cinema to become a director. That said, I still haven't shut doors. Direction is a long-term plan, for which there's a lot more to learn. I'm now working on a few ideas. Since cinema has no language barrier as such, I'm open to working either here or in Malayalam or Tamil."
