Kat Harlton
Photos provided via PR team
Actress/producer Pallavi Sastry can be seen in her film premiering on HBO Max on May 15, titled Land Of Gold (2021 AT&T Untold Stories winner and it premiered at Tribeca Film Festival last year). It’s a powerful film about a Punjabi truck driver who finds a young Mexican-American girl inside his truck and the crazy journey life takes them on as he tries to reunite her with her family.
Pallavi is also starring in the new Walking Dead spinoff series Dead City premiering on AMC on June 18.
Pallavi is the Co-Founder of Adda G Productions, Inc with her partner and real life sister, Keertana Sastry (also producer on Land of Gold). You may recognize her from season 4 of CBS’ Blue Bloods, or Netflix’s Master of None, Quantico, The Affair, Nurse Jackie, The Night Of, Last Week Tonight w/ John Oliver and more. She’s an advocate for body positivity, diverse representation in entertainment and is a proud mom, wife, business owner and vegan.
I had the opportunity to chat with Pallavi about ‘Land Of Gold’, Dead City and what’s next.
Kat: What does it mean to you to have “Land Of Gold” premiering on HBO Max this May?
Pallavi: It’s an intense feeling of accomplishment and validation. We love our film and know its value, of course, but a major streamer agreeing that our film deserves a platform and then giving it to us is pretty rare. Please go watch it on HBO Max now!
Kat: The feature centres around the story of Kiran, a First-generation Punjabi truck driver and terrified father-to-be who takes a last-minute job before his baby is due, and discovers a young Mexican-American girl inside his trailer, making his already tumultuous life take a drastic turn as he seeks to reunite her with her family. Why was it important to you to be part of this story? Did you learn anything that surprised you?
Pallavi: It’s interesting because a family drama, a road trip movie, people overcoming generational trauma, these are all such relatable stories that we have probably seen before but we just haven’t seen a Punjabi trucker centered in a story ever. That’s what was so exciting for us. We rarely get to see first-generation south asian stories at all! We also don’t get to see undocumented young people have fully fleshed out narratives. It somehow always comes back to centering the people who encounter them. I have learned so much about how collaborative a writing process is and am so proud of Nardeep’s ability to collaborate with so many different voices to make sure that all the characters had their own arcs.
Kat: What you hope the audience takes from the film?
Pallavi: That staying curious is what will save our society. America is so divided and we forget that we all came here wanting the same thing. We may not understand why or how someone got to America, but it doesn’t mean that they don’t deserve a chance to build a safe and happy life that is full of possibilities.
Kat: You’re set as a recurring star in the highly anticipated AMC series, The Walking Dead: Dead City premiering June 18. Is there anything you can share with us about your role? What was that experience like?
Pallavi: I can’t say much but I can say that the whole cast is amazing. There is a wonderful young actress that I worked with a lot named, Mahina Napoleon, who is a series regular. She is stunning in this show and I know she’s gonna be a breakout star. I got to watch the action and the magic up close, like how those zombies get created, oh my god – what a bucket list moment! The special effects are unreal and the show takes the apocalypse to New York City, which is also its own character so I think the TWD fans will watch it and never want it to end. Watch it and then tell AMC you want another season so we can keep it going!
Kat: What can we expect from you for the rest of 2023?
Pallavi: My sister/producing partner, Keertana Sastry, and I will be sharing our slate of our upcoming film projects so keep an eye on us in the news and on social media for that announcement!
Connect with Pallavi on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pallavisastry