In early 2020, Shabana Azmi began shooting for Steven Spielberg-backed Halo, adapted from a popular video game. Two years on, the sci-fi television series—which sees the actor play Admiral Margaret Paragonsky, the head of the Office of Naval Intelligence—is set to air on Paramount+ from March 24. Azmi says it was a sheer pleasure to be part of a project that employed colour-blind casting. “Halo has a cast that includes Korean, African American, English, Indian and Hungarian actors. None of them is cast due to their ethnicity, nor is anyone made to put on an accent that is not intrinsically theirs. That is so refreshing,” she exclaims.

A still from Halo. Pics/Instagram, Getty Images