The Old Man and the New Parwana

As an actress immersed in the captivating world of “The Old Man,” I find myself awestruck by the richness of my character’s journey. Playing Angela-turned-Parwana has been a rollercoaster, filled with emotional turmoil, language barriers, and moments of pure triumph.

Spoilers follow for the second season of The Old Man, through finale episode “XV,” which aired on FX on Thursday, October 24.

In the show “The Old Man,” the elderly characters have been making decisions for many years. Regardless of their origin or culture, they understand each other due to their shared knowledge of international politics – a language that is predominantly male, especially in the second season with its emphasis on Taliban militants and Russian soldiers attacking an Afghan village. However, before the final episode “XIV,” the dust from a conflict over a precious mineral settles, revealing a new figure on the scene. Alia Shawkat’s character, Parwana Hamzad, emerges with her head covered and a resolute look in her eyes, having risen to prominence.

Shawkat explains that Parwana isn’t initially a significant character in the story, but her role expands considerably. This development aligns perfectly with “The Old Man”, as she eventually becomes more influential than the two main American characters, Dan Chase and Harold Harper. What attracted him to the series from the start was the idea that it would explore an aging American hero’s past actions and their consequences. On a symbolic level, it implies that as the old man fades away, a young, ideally Arab female character is stepping up to mend what has been broken.

Shawkat, adorned with an Artists4Ceasefire pin during our video call, expresses admiration for the intricacies of the series. As an actor, she recognizes the unique flair of the show, including its extended action sequences and captivating monologues, which demand a high level of precision that may challenge her and co-stars Jeff Bridges and Amy Brenneman, yet ultimately produces the necessary onscreen tension.

In my perspective, she harbors feelings of affection towards him, yet there are actions of his that she hasn’t been able to overlook or pardon, including what he has done and what she has discovered about him. During their confrontation at the season finale dinner, her emotional state was a mix of longing and anger. Now that she is aware of this truth, she demands action from him, expressing her feelings by saying, “I need you to do this for me. It’s the least you could do.

I was quite excited about Parwana assuming control over the mineral deposit. Watching her journey from being a U.S. government agent to reuniting with her Afghan family and discovering the differences between their lives and what her American father figures portrayed, sparked my curiosity. What were your thoughts on this closing scene?

She needs Dan’s capacity for violence to overcome the Russian mercenaries, but I think she also displays elements of each parental figure. She is a leader like Hamzad is. I saw some of her mother’s ability to manipulate. There’s Harper’s sense of right and wrong. Am I being too sentimental in thinking that every parent affected her?
No, I think you’re right. She’s learning these qualities in herself as they arise. Sometimes you surprise yourself. She’s definitely not a perfect person. I mean, with the Russian mercenary — we humanize him. He had a family and kids, and she’s like, “Yeah, but you gotta go.” And it’s awful. Even the actor who plays him, I loved him so much, and I was like, It’s so awful what she’s gonna do to him. But it is that thing about right and wrong, which is an interesting theme about this show — it’s always changing. And especially in war and in higher-up positions, people who are actually sending others out there to war and saying, “No, we need to kill these people,” they have to have such a clear idea in their mind of who deserves this and who doesn’t. And it’s a really upsetting thing, because me personally, as an actor, I’m like, Nobody deserves any of this.

In the series, you’re portraying three distinct characters: Emily, Angela (who is also Harper’s surrogate daughter), and Parwana. During season one, I embodied both Emily and Angela. The addition of Parwana came in season two. To prepare for each character, I didn’t follow a specific physical map, but rather let the characters evolve intuitively over time.

With Parwana, there’s a fissure. She’s emotional and enraged, expressing feelings she’s never truly acknowledged before. And she can be quite disorganized, as an FBI agent you learn to suppress emotions and manipulate others, which she does effectively to obtain what she requires. However, when conversing with her aunt and biological father, she can no longer mask the internal conflict between these distinct personalities within her, a struggle that’s never occurred before. I was simply relying on the flow of her character development, from appearing mature at the start, to feeling childish, to being scattered and lacking a stable foundation.

In a recent chat, I shared that I don’t entirely morph into roles; instead, I infuse them with aspects of myself, often different phases of my life. This season, as I navigated pregnancy throughout the first four episodes, I found myself particularly drawn to the transformation I was experiencing. I adopted an attitude of, “I’m still me, I’m just pregnant, but my life is about to change.” While acting, I didn’t consciously delve into the pregnancy aspect – “I’m pregnant, whatever” – but subconsciously, it served as a catalyst. The character’s journey was marked by a transformation, and I wasn’t fully aware of its extent. It felt eerily similar to my personal life, where I was embarking on a new phase with the birth of my child. When the strikes occurred, my baby was born healthy, and I returned to set. Clad in jeans and sitting at a diner, I found myself saying, “I’ve been through some tough times. I’ll tell you about it later, Dad. But right now, I need your help.” [Laughs] It was fascinating how my journey mirrored the character’s.

While watching the series, I found myself reflecting deeply on my father, who was born in Iran and held secrets about his past that he never shared. Your comment about navigating privilege as a biracial individual resonated with me, as it mirrors the experiences of your character in Afghanistan, uncovering a family she was previously unaware of, grappling with America’s history in the country. Did you consider this aspect while creating the story?

I’m deeply grateful for the opportunity to portray such a character, as she navigates those two aspects. Growing up in America afforded her the chance to become an FBI agent and learn Russian, whereas if she was raised in Afghanistan under a different father, her training might have been different. This role allows her to reconnect with her roots. On a personal level, I find immense resonance in this narrative, particularly in the stories I create and characters I play that reflect my family’s heritage, especially considering the turmoil in the Middle East right now. It’s heart-wrenching and disheartening, but it’s even more crucial for artists from the Middle East to give voice to these experiences and remind people that we are not just statistics of war casualties. We are individuals with families, stories, and lives that matter. The suffering portrayed in this season is a reflection of real-world events, yet art mirrors life in this way.

In our conversation, Navid brought up your past collaboration, which later turned into a reunion on set as actors. Let me ask you about the dynamics between the two female characters spanning different generations that you and Jacqueline portrayed? Working with Jacqueline was an enriching experience. Our scenes didn’t involve the usual heartfelt “I love you,” but rather depicted a complex relationship filled with truth. Her character is strong-willed, and she rarely showed affection towards Parwana. In the funeral scene, I grabbed her hand, as it wasn’t typical for her to express warmth physically. My character felt a sense of responsibility towards hers, like taking her place and fulfilling her duties. Jacqueline’s acting challenged me greatly, and she often served as a mentor, guiding my choices. When she passed away, it happened swiftly, prompting Parwana to seek revenge. I found our scenes together captivating, as Jacqueline constantly pushed me to up my game. She was the wisest among us, maintaining her composure while everyone else was emotionally charged. Additionally, Jacqueline had to learn Dari for the role and I was always amazed by her dedication, as she delivered full scenes in the language.

In the final scene of the season, we find ourselves at a diner where I disclose to Dan and Zoe that I’m still alive and in control of the mineral deposit. The balance of power noticeably shifts during this encounter. Filming this scene was spread over two days, making it feel like we were shooting an indie film with 12 shots taken under the table. We joked about how many more angles we had left to capture, but it paid off – creating a tense atmosphere due to the numerous close-up shots.

For two straight days, we spent approximately 12 hours each day rehearsing lines repeatedly at that diner. It was absolutely madness, but the company of Jeff and Amy made it a pleasure. They’re just naturally hilarious and seemed to be giggling non-stop. Whenever someone would stumble on a line or hesitate, the other would step in with the correct response – we had rehearsed it so many times. Despite the repetition, it was still an enjoyable experience because during the crucial scenes where we truly needed to act, I felt like I was delivering a powerful punch. “Yes, I’m your daughter, but I don’t admire you in the same way I used to. It’s been irrevocably changed.” It felt as if we were delving into something more profound. And when the headlights from passing cars shone upon us, it was akin to the feeling one gets while watching the actual performance. There was a sense of gravity to it that felt incredibly empowering. I felt fully immersed in my character, displaying that strength. Last night, I watched it with my parents and my dad exclaimed, “You’re so cool!” He was genuinely captivated by it.

In that moment, who did I refer to as Parwana? Yes, Emily and Angela are no longer present in the scene. You can see that I changed the name on my chair from “Angela” to “Parwana.” While she might still respond to either “Angela” or “Emily,” it seems to me that she considers herself a different person now. This is not like changing one’s name; it feels more like leaving behind a former identity, which I liken to a dead name. She appears pleased to see him, but there’s also unforgiveness for his past actions and the truth she’s discovered. Now, her sentiment is, “I need you to do this for me. It’s the least you could do.” There’s no sign of affectionate pleading like “Come on, Dad” in her demeanor anymore.

God willing, there’ll be another season. How much she allows him back in, I’m interested to see. She’s a little grizzled after what she’s had to do. She’s tired and doesn’t really have patience for them. I imagine her on her private jet afterward, having a hard drink. And Dan’s like, “Are you okay?” And she’s like, “Yeah, I don’t want to talk to you right now.”

2024-10-25 06:54

The Old Man and the New Parwana

Read More

Minority Mindset