The Suspect | Interview with Anjli Mohindra (DS Riya Devi)

Q: What drew you to The Suspect?

“I was gripped by the scripts. The whole story is centred around the death of a young woman in London. I wanted to get to the bottom of whodunit.”

Q: Who is DS Riya Devi?

“Devi is a hot shot police detective sergeant who hasn’t quite found her tribe yet. She wants to climb the ranks within the police force but murder isn’t necessarily where she wants to end up. It’s a stepping stone for her to get to the next level of her career. She is incredibly tenacious and super smart. There’s an awareness that she is fast tracking her way up the ladder.

“She is partnered with Detective Inspector Vince Ruiz, played by Shaun Parkes. He’s a bit of a maverick cop who likes to do things based on instinct while she is very by the book. So they make a very unlikely duo.”

Q: Can you tell us more about their partnership?

“They frustrate each other at the beginning. Devi just wants to follow things in the way you are supposed to.

“There’s a system, stages and steps in police procedure to do your job well. That has never failed her so far. It’s certainly why she’s moving so quickly up the career ladder.

“But Ruiz likes to use his gut instinct. They annoy each other. He asks a lot of rhetorical questions that she feels the need to answer. It’s a bit like a zip when the teeth don’t line up. It’s really frustrating. But then eventually they realise they bring out the best in each other. They encourage each other to think outside of the boxes they have been used to thinking in.

“Ruiz talks about the murder of yet another young woman, having already investigated many in his career. Knowing there will be more to come. He says, ‘I don’t have the words for it anymore.’ That line was inspired by the heartache of the murders of young women in real life.

“At first police believe the victim is a sex worker, partly because of where her body was found. In the early rehearsals we discussed the language used to describe sex workers and the frustrations they feel at their safety not being taken as seriously as that of other women. It does feel quite archaic in so many ways.”

Q: How would you describe The Suspect?

“On one level it explores a murder and who is responsible. With Dr Joe O’Loughlin (Aidan Turner) coming under suspicion of being involved. The Suspect also explores the mind. How we are, perhaps, already in childhood the people we are destined to become, based on the experiences we have.

“At the outset Joe is actually brought into the police investigation for us to try and get inside the mind of the murderer. It’s an idea Devi has after a chance encounter with him. She thinks it would be useful to have a psychologist helping the police.”

Q: What was it like working with Shaun Parkes (DI Vincent Ruiz) and Aidan Turner (Dr Joe O’Loughlin)?

“Shaun was a delight to work with. He’s an incredibly generous actor and a real artist. We met up before we started filming to try and mine out the subtext and subtleties between our two characters. The relationship that slowly forms and the things we could play just with looks. I look up to Shaun. He encouraged me to ask questions and learn from him. On every take I was just mesmerised by his process. Aidan is such a beautiful human. So sensitive, kind and curious about other people. Just brilliant to play opposite him.

“Aidan gave so much, even when the cameras turned around to me. He gave everything to make sure I had lots to bounce off. A generous actor and a bit of a star.”

Q: You had worked with director James Strong before?

“I had the fortune of working with him on Vigil as well. James has such a vision. He is brilliant at creating a really thrilling tone to a piece and kicking it off in a very dynamic way. James is constantly mining out little character beats between us all which gives us lots to play with.”

Q: Where did you film?

“The building we used for the police headquarters is right between The Shard and London Bridge. An amazing location with really striking windows. It had the most incredible views. It was like it was made for the show and it’s just an empty space in the middle of London. We kept looking at the view out of the windows.

“London is a massive character in this drama. Some of the places we filmed are pretty iconic and beautiful to see on screen. Coal Drops Yard at King’s Cross was a particular favourite of mine along with the police headquarters.”

Q: Are there similarities between actors and detectives?

“When you are preparing to play a part you are forensically going through the script and looking for clues the writer has left about who this person is. You’re filling in the blanks, fitting the pieces together to try and work out who this character is. Which is almost like pursuing a suspect.”

Q: When you read scripts like this, are you good at working out who the killer is?

“I truly did not expect the ending of The Suspect. I have always written myself and I’m in development on a piece at the moment. The more you write, the more you spot the little formulas that often occur. I give myself three guesses at the beginning of a thriller. And I was completely wrong when it came to The Suspect.”

Q: The background of characters is highlighted in The Suspect. You were raised in Nottingham?

“I feel like Nottingham is often the forgotten gem of the Midlands. People think we’re northern. And then northern people think we’re southern. I think Nottingham people are real salt of the earth people. They’re really grounded. I love going home.

“I also feel very lucky to have been part of the Television Workshop in Nottingham which has bred so many brilliant actors, like Vicky McClure, Jack O’Connell, Joe Dempsie and Aisling Loftus. To have grown up around those actors and learned from them. I feel proud of my Notts roots.”

Q: You are active on social media. Does that give actors a direct voice?

“What I love about social media is being able to signal boost things I really care about. I’m a little bit of an activist in a way. A lot of actors I admire and respect are. They don’t want to sit back. But you have to be wary of going too far. There’s a fine line there. But if you can use even a small platform to make people feel seen, it’s a real shame not to use it.”

Q: Is it a good time to be in the industry with so much screen drama now being made?

“I really do think so. There are so many platforms now, so many streamers, so much work being made. It sometimes can get a little bit overwhelming. There are definitely drought periods where everything is cast and is already filming. There are inevitable lulls. But there’s a lot of work out there. Lots of material, lots of actors getting opportunities that weren’t there a few years ago.”