Ambika Mod, who made us cry buckets as Emma Morley in the Netflix miniseries One Day, is a riot in real life. The 28-year-old British-Indian actress is also a standup comedian and a writer.
In One Day, which is an adaptation of David Nicholls’ bestselling novel and is a current fan favourite, Ambika reprises the role played by Anna Hathaway in the 2011 film co-starring Jim Sturgess.
Ambika Mod and Leo Woodall in One Day, streaming on Netflix
In a recent episode of The Graham Norton Show, Ambika revealed that she finds it hard to shut her eyes fully and sleeps with them open, citing hilarious reasons. With her sparkling wit and candour, Ambika left the other guests on the show – such as actors Ian McKellen and Michael Sheen, and comic Josh Widdicombe – in splits.
Check out the video here:
Born and brought up in England by Indian parents, Ambika took an interest in theatre and sketch comedy from an early age.
She did improvised comedy at the Free Association in London, and featured in a couple of short films before drawing attention with her role as Shruti Acharya in the BAFTA-winning BBC drama, This Is Going to Hurt. One Day’s Emma Morley turned out to be her breakout role, catapulting her to the big league. Next up, she will reportedly be seen in the Disney+ series Playdate, starring Holliday Grainger.
Unlike most young actors on Instagram, Ambika posts only occasionally but that is enough to give a glimpse of her goofy side.
Her first post was a montage of her ‘bored’ facial expressions. ‘It finally happened, don’t look at me,’ hinting at her late entry into the world of Instagram.
In this post, Ambika’s self-deprecating humour is on full display. ‘Did it hurt? When you suddenly remember you were born alone, and God knows you’ll die alone so tell your little jokes Ambika but never forget only death has the last laugh,’ she wrote.
After receiving an award from the Royal Television Society, Ambika posted a few pictures with the caption – ‘Once again, validation is a dish best served externally. Thank you @royaltelevisionsociety for a huge night and an award for taking several photos in a variety of ways.’
