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Sunday 10 January 2010

thestar.com.my/lifestyle

Its Archie-lah!
There will be excitement and celebration in Malaysia when British actress Archie Panjabis new TV series The Good Wife hits local airwaves. >SV2
EIKE SCHROTER / CBS

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COVER STORY

VARIETY, SUNDAY 10 JANUARY 2010

Law and leather

This actress who has close ties with Malaysia talks about her biggest role yet as a leather-loving investigator of a legal firm.
Therell be a lot of celebration in Kuala Lumpur (when The Good Wife airs in Malaysia), she says, chuckling. As soon as The Good Wife, which stars HE name Archie Panjabi may not be Julianna Margulies as the title character, starts very familiar to many Malaysians but screening on local television, Malaysian viewwhen her show The Good Wife preers other than her relatives! are certain to mieres on Hallmark Channel this week, some take note of Archie, not least because of her Malaysians will be ecstatic to see their relaaudacious, plain-spoken chartive on television. acter in the series. The British actress, who Archie plays Kalinda Sharma, plays the prominent role of a leather-loving in-house a law firm employee in the investigator for a law firm who new drama executive prodoesnt feel the need to be duced by Ridley Scott the tactful most of the time. Shed famed director behind much rather tell you the truth blockbusters Alien (1979), (or sometimes, insult you with Blade Runner (1982) and it), whether you like it or not. Gladiator (2000) has famiHer dialogue does make me ly in Petaling Jaya, Selangor, laugh she has some very fun and Port Dickson, Negri ARCHIE PANJABI lines; every time somebody Sembilan. says something to her, shell In a recent telephone give a response which they interview from New York cant respond to, says the City where she works, the actress who hails from London. (Archie, short 37-year-old star, a regular visitor to the counfor Archana, is a nickname she got from try, enthuses: I love Malaysia the food over school as it was easier to pronounce.) there is ... oh gosh, my favourite! The Good Wife, currently running in the One of the reasons why Im quite excited United States since its premiere last to do an interview with The Star is because I have close family in Malaysia and theyre call- September, is a unique hybrid: its both a legal and family drama that centres around ing me, When are you coming in? We want Alicia Florrick, the wife of a state attorney, to pick up the paper (when the article on her who returns to the workforce after her huscomes out). Theyre all excited, you know. No bands fall from grace following a sex scanone else in the family has ever been in this dal. profession. So they get really thrilled when Alicia, a lawyer, has to constantly prove they see me on television. herself to a public who often ties her husbands misdeeds to her, and battle her younger colleagues for a place in the legal firm. The role, capably portrayed by Margulies, has earned her a best actress nod in next Sundays Golden Globe Awards. Kalinda Says Archie: A woman who has to go Sharma back to work to fend for her children (Archie because her husband is in prison I think it Panjabi) crosses all barriers in terms of age or class. I often uses think everybody will be able to watch this unorthodox and understand it. Theres also a lot of office methods to politics (in the show) and its something that get what she happens in all parts of the world. Expect the wants in an unexpected I think its a very unpredictable investigation. drama. Photo Archie a seasoned actor whose fairly from CBS large portfolio spanning 15 years includes films such as Bend It Like Beckham (2002), The Constant Gardener (2005) and A Mighty Heart (2007) calls The Good Wife a ground-breaking show. She attributes its success partly to its well-written and compelling characters. When you have a drama with such rich characters, audiences are immediately drawn to it, she says. Archie admits that she was initially attracted to The Good Wife because of Scott; the Englishman serves as one of the shows executive producers. Ive worked with him before and I know he has very high production values. But then I read the script, and I couldnt put it down. Kalinda Sharma seems like such a challenging role to play, she says. Kalinda is Alicias partner when

By ELIZABETH TAI starmag-feedback@thestar.com.my

Expect the unexpected its a very unpredictable drama

VARIETY, SUNDAY 10 JANUARY 2010

COVER STORY

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IF your husband cheats on you, what would you do? Slap him (like the character of Julianna Margulies does on The Good Wife) or smash him with a golf club (as Elin Nordegren allegedly did with the disgraced Tiger Woods)? Veteran actress Margulies, 43, thought she had the answer. I was so quick to judge all those women that I saw standing up and standing by their man. In my head I kept thinking, Well, why are you standing there? she says. However, after playing Alicia Florrick whose husband Peter (played by Chris Noth a.k.a. Mr Big of Sex and the City fame), a state attorney, gets indicted in a sex scandal in The Good Wife, she realises that the answer is just not that simple. In one of the scenes, Alicia slaps Peter hard across the face. The scene was shot three times! The first time I didnt hit him hard enough, apparently. The second time was good, but the camera was off. And the third time was perfect, recalls Margulies, laughing. All that force left a red welt on Noths face so filming was halted for the day! Chris was so great. He was like, Oh, please, Ive been hit so many times, she says. In a transcript made available to the press by Hallmark Channel which airs the TV drama on Astro, Margulies further says: We all assume that when you see the scandal, hes a bad man and shes a good woman. We dont know what theyve been going through in their own marriage. Were all human beings. And I think were all so quick to judge these people without knowing the facts, adds the New Yorker whos

Stand by her man

Elin Nordegren may not approve of The Good Wife but its a thought-provoking show that tackles infidelity and the people affected by it.
married to a lawyer (they have a two-year-old son). The characters in The Good Wife are as quick to judge Alicia the same way. Why do you stay with him? many of them ask her through the course of the series. For one, Alicias colleague, Kalinda Sharma (Archie Panjabi), in her trademark acerbic way, says to Alicia in the first episode: I would have stuck a knife in his heart. Kalinda is judgmental of Alicia in the beginning, says Margulies. I think she really judges Alicia to be a weak woman, and thats a great balance, because Kalindas so strong but you know theres got to be something going there eventually, she says. But why are men more prone to this kind of scandals? Women do not have the time. Dear lord, I mean, between the kids, the job, the cleaning and the cooking, we just dont have the time. Honestly, were exhausted, she says with a laugh. But, seriously, Margulies loves the complexity of her character. This is a woman whod thought her life was going one way for many, many years and trusted that life and world that she lived in. And then everything crumbles. So, as an actor, I feel like, well, therere so many places to go, she explains. Margulies had made a career playing strong, complicated women. She won an Emmy Award in 1997 for her role as nurse Carol Hathaway in ER (she left the medical drama series in 2000 after a six-year stint). And she has just been nominated for Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series Drama for The Good Wife in the upcoming Golden Globes. For me, television is the medium for women. The richest characters I can find are on television for where Im at in my career, she says. Yet, initially Margulies wasnt

Julianna Margulies enjoys playing the complicated Alicia Florrick. In The Good Wife, Alicia has an uncomfortable working relationship with Cary Agos (Matt Czuchry) as they vie for survival in their law firm. Photo from CBS

very keen to get back into a law drama after her stint in another as theyre difficult to shoot and the legal jargon is challenging. Thankfully, her previous experience in another legal drama, Canterburys Law, and having a husband who is a former Wall Street litigator, helped heaps. Playing Alicia has given Margulies a healthy respect for women who have gone through similar circumstances such as US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, wife to former US President Bill Clinton. I feel like these women really didnt get their due, opines Margulies. These are smart women. ... Most of them have two degrees, at least, and theyre incredibly accomplished. So I found it (Alicia Florrick) a fascinating role to play. Its very important to all of us on the show that it isnt about demeaning who they are and gaining from their downfall, because its very painful, what they went through. Alicia has a lot in common with these women; she graduated at the top of her class at Georgetown University 15 years before the scandal disrupted what she thought was her happy family. Having to return to the workforce so late in her career is a challenge for Alicia as, unlike her peers, she didnt have the chance to hone her skills in the courtroom. Often a mans world, the courtroom becomes an interesting backdrop to develop her character, notes Margulies. I also think its a great way for her to discover who she is as a woman ... shes coming out of her cocoon, hails the lead star. ELIZABETH TAI

the latters trying to solve a case; she often has to do things that Alicia would rather not do, such as flirt with the janitor so that she can gain access to a suspects apartment. Kalinda has the ability to converse with both men and women to get information; thats when she uses her charm, notes Archie. But while its Kalindas job to go around poking her nose into other peoples business, she doesnt share much about herself at all. So when a mysterious woman answers her phone in a recently aired episode in the US, people began speculating about Kalindas sexuality. Thats something I cant answer as I dont know where theyre going to take her, says Archie. Thats what I like about the series; everyone has their own interpretation about the series nothing is spelled out in black and white. Its just like life, right? But theres very little Archie shares with her confident, enigmatic character. I think for every character any actor plays ... you bring a little bit about yourself. But this is quite a complex character; shes a lot stronger than me, a lot more intelligent than me.... she laughs. Playing complex characters often entails doing challenging things. Archie has to adopt an American accent, and go for shooting lessons to look convincing when she wields a gun. But it is Kalindas wardrobe, which consists of leather jackets, vests and high-heeled leather boots, that proves to be the toughest challenge for her! The most challenging thing? Walking in those boots! she remarks with a laugh. Although The Good Wife is set in Chicago, it is filmed in New York. Archie, together with fellow cast member and Los Angeles native Matt Czuchry, who plays Alicias young office rival Cary Agos,

Starring opposite Angelina Jolie in the film A Mighty Heart.

I knew Id end up doing well. ... So when I was in school, Id be thinking, Thats what Im going to be doing, so why am I sitting in school? Fortunately, her parents were very supportive of her dreams, though they encouraged Archie to study first so that she had some other experiences. She dutifully obtained a degree in management studies from Brunel University in London and went on to make her film debut in the indie production East is East in 1999. In the course of her career she has taken on many roles and adopted many accents, but shed love to play a Malaysian character someday. I definitely want to film in KL one day, she says. That will be challenging as Malaysia has so many accents, I tell her. No way-lah! Archie exclaims. n The Good Wife premieres on Hallmark (Astro Channel 702) on Thursday, 10pm.

Archies first movie role ... in the indie flick East is East.
loves exploring the metropolis. Its such a fun place to be, people are so warm and welcoming here, she says. And although the cast works 12- to 14hour days, it still finds filming fun. We have a really good crew that is great fun to be with and has a good sense of humour that makes the time fly, Archie says. This is Archies first foray into American television, but it wasnt a deliberate move. Something has to really stand out for me to feel, Yes, this is something Id like to do. A lot of time its the character how chal-

With Kulvinder Ghir in Bend It Like Beckham.

lenging or interesting it is that makes the decision for her. Im just taking every day that it comes nothing lasts forever. As long as the roles are good Ill keep on doing them. Archie had always known that shed be an actress. It sounds ridiculous but it was something