ACTRESS Pooja Ghai describes the racial issues explored in the Octagon Theatre's forthcoming world premiere of the play Meet The Mukherjees as a "can of worms".
"A lot of the issues between the Jamaican community and the Asian community come out," she says. "A lot of that deep-set prejudice and racism that's there, ironically from two cultures that have suffered the same oppression and the same dehumanisation in a way.
"So it's quite interesting to see two cultures of colour go at each other despite their history where the lesson out of it is that it's better to be unified and respect each other."
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But despite the potentially serious subject matter, the 32-year-old actress says that the key to the play lies in the humour that stops the audience from feeling that they are being "preached at".
The play, which opened yesterday, was written by Tanika Gupta and is directed by the Octagon's artistic director Mark Babych. It centres around Anita, played by Roksaneh Ghawam-Shahidi and Aaron, played by Mark Springer, whose casual affair becomes a bit more serious than intended.
As the couple face up to the prospect of introducing their soon-to-be in-laws, the situation becomes increasingly fraught.
Pooja plays Chitra, Anita's mother whose own husband has passed away, and who is projecting her own fears on to her daughter.
"I guess she feels that if her daughter was settled there would be a great weight released from her and she could relax a bit," Pooja says. "There's a real fear that she's marrying into the wrong culture, to the wrong kind of man. So it's her journey of dealing with that and dealing with her daughter's true wishes."
Pooja, whose parents are Indian, was born in Kenya and moved to a boarding school in England just before her GCSEs. She went on to study psychology at university, but spent a year at drama school as soon as she had graduated, saying that she knew from a young age that she wanted to be an actress.
Her parents were not as convinced about their daughter's chosen career path, but Pooja says she knew that she was doing the right thing.
"I knew from when I was 11, that's when I did my first play and I just fell in love with it.
"It was so strong for me that I just kept going down that road. It just made so much sense to me, I feel really blessed to be honest that I'm still here in my 30s doing it."
Despite her age, the characters she play tend to be much older.
"It's been a tagline of my career. I've played older women all the way.
"I think there was a time when I was a bit younger when I was like, why am I always playing older women?', but actually if you're telling a good story and you're part of a good team telling it, then it doesn't matter."
The cast also includes Octagon 40th Anniversary Season patron Wyllie Longmore, who was nominated for an MEN Theatre Award 2005 as best actor in a leading role in the Octagon's I Just Stopped By To See The Man.
Meet The Mukherjees is at the Octagon until May 24. Tickets are available priced £8.50 to £18.50 on 01204 520661 or at www.octagonbolton.co.uk.
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