Maitreyi Ramakrishnan, who has become an overnight star after delivering a breakout performance as Devi Vishwakumar in Netflix’s globally popular teen comedy series Never Have I Ever, has requested people to pronounce her name correctly.
The 19-year-old actress recently took to social media and said how she would love her name to be pronounced correctly. Frustrated about her name being mispronounced way too often, Ramakrishnan shared the actual pronunciation in a voice memo.
“I have taken this voice memo like, 5,000 times because there is so much to say. Names are so important, and I find that it’s a big part of your identity, it personally is for me. I love my name so, so much. And constantly, I get people saying, 'Oh, you do not even know how to say your own name right.’ It’s like, 'No, no, no, I do. I do know how to say my own name right. Because the reality is, no one knows how to say someone else's name except for the person themselves, you know? Like, this is my name. I am sorry, but I get to call the shots here. There is one answer, and that answer is my own. There’s no discussion for that,” she said in her voice memo.
The actress continued, “When I was younger, I used to call people, ‘yeah you call me my-tree, whatever’, I don’t care. But I am asking for basic respect when I am asking them to say my name right. Many of us do, right. We want our names to be said right, we don’t want it butchered. I hope you guys don’t have to go through that too often but now, being my wise 19-year-old self, I ask people to say my name correctly and I put a lot of effort. Whenever I meet people, I make sure they say my name right. I’d like to pronounce my name as /my-tray-yee/ /Rama-Krishnan/. That’s how I like to say it. Not expecting people to switch up their accents on me, just asking for basic respect.”
On the work front, Ramakrishnan next stars in The Netherfield Girls, a fresh and contemporary take on Pride and Prejudice. She plays Lizzie Bennet, the protagonist of Jane Austen’s classic novel. It marks her first film role.
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