Ex-‘EastEnders’ star slams Asian portrayal

Former ‘EastEnders’ star Deepak Verma has slammed the show for its depiction of Asian life, claiming its current Asian family is unrealistic.

According to The Sun, Deepak said the current Masood family were “two-dimensional and ill-conceived” with “stupid clothes and accents”.

Deepak, who played the BBC One’s soap’s market trader Sanjay Kapoor in the 1990s, praised rival ITV1’s ‘Coronation Street’ and Jimmi Harkishin’s “brilliant” portrayal of Asian Dev Alahan. He said: “He’s a dodgy womanising sleazebag. He’s Indian but that’s got nothing to do with it. He’s just a brilliant actor.”

A BBC spokesperson said, “It’s a shame Deepak feels that way.

“But the Masood family is hugely popular with EastEnders viewers.”