Suhana Khan, Agastya Nanda, Khushi Kapoor and the rest of 'The Archies' cast on the characters they portrayed and more

Zoya Akhtar’s The Archies is probably one of the most anticipated movies of the year, and we aren’t surprised, considering it marks the debut of Suhana Khan, Khushi Kapoor, and Agastya Nanda. The other members of the much-talked-about cast include—Dot, Mihir Ahuja, Vedang Raina, and Yuvraj Menda. This Indian musical spin on the popular comic book, Archies, has us all at the edge of our seats with some popcorn, eagerly waiting for December 7.  

Until then, however, we are grabbing onto whatever information we can about the movie and the cast. Luckily for us, the cast of The Archies, along with the movie’s writer and producer, Reema Kagti, and Netflix India’s vice president of content, Monika Shergill, addressed a session titled ‘New Kids on the Block: Meet the Gen Z of Bollywood aka The Archies Gang’, on Day 1 of the India Today Conclave. In the session, the cast opened up about the similarities they shared with the character they played and their friendship IRL, and some of them (Dot and Mihir Ahuja) even exhibited their music talent. Let’s get into it! 

Agastya Nanda as Archie Andrews   

Nanda connected with Archie’s character because they both love music. However, he made it very clear that unlike Archies, he is not a Casanova! He said, “I wouldn't call myself a Casanova. Something that we do share in common is our love for music, because it helps you deal with a lot of emotions.” 

Dot as Ethel Muggs   

Let's all agree that no one quite fits the quirky character of Ethel Muggs like Dot. When she was asked at the India Today Conclave whether it was easy to bring Ethel to life, she said that being an "oddball" like her character helped, but going back in time and playing the dorky teenager was tough for her. 

Dot also talked about how her journey with Archies began. She said, “Acting was never on the cards for me. It just sort of happened because Zoya wanted one of my tracks for this film. I have worked with Netflix in the past. In fact, Reema directed one of my music videos, too. That is how everything started. Music is my first love, but I am excited to see what this world can offer me.” 

She then went on to do a small performance of her song—Everybody Dances To Techno! 

Khushi Kapoor as Betty Cooper   

When Kapoor was asked if she is a ‘goody two-shoes', just like her character, Betty, she said they share a lot of similar traits. She said, “I'd like to think so. I think we were cast because there was so much of us that we had in our characters. There's a lot about Betty that I see in myself as well, and I think I found that out the more I played her. I think she is very sweet and empathetic but is also sensitive sometimes. And she is really caring, but sometimes she can tend to put other people's needs ahead of hers. So, I kind of identify with certain parts of her personality.”  

Kapoor went on to talk about her fellow cast members and how it was easy to break the ice with them because they were all going through the same experiences and spending so much time together. She said, “Doing acting workshops together made us open up to each other and be vulnerable with each other. I think, towards the end of the shoot, we were just kind of moving in a small herd everywhere together.” 

Mihir Ahuja as Jughead Jones   

Jughead Jones is a cult-favourite Archies character. When asked what the toughest part of bringing Jughead to life was, Ahuja said it was the boot camp that Akhtar put all the cast members through. He said, “The toughest part was the boot camp, which had acting workshops and singing, and swimming sessions. I am also playing drums in the film. I took drumming lessons and it took a bit of time to acquire that skill set.”

Suhana Khan as Veronica Lodge    

Suhana Khan will be portraying the character of Veronica Lodge and it’s one of the characters we are most excited about. When Khan was asked about Veronica, she said, “What makes her so magnetic and stand out is that she is unabashedly herself and knows her worth. That’s something I am learning from the character.” 

Khan also spoke about her first day on set and said that amid all the lights, make-up, and chaos, she felt extremely insignificant and nervous. She said, “In the middle of a number of people and lights on set, the hair and make-up shenanigans, and all the chaos, I felt extremely insignificant. I knew that everything that everyone was doing around me was felicitating Zoya’s vision and I guess knowing that on my first day and realising that, made me extremely nervous. But Zoya made us super comfortable. She held our hands throughout it all. She made Riverdale feel like home from the very first day.” 

Yuvraj Menda as Dilton Doiley   

Menda said he fully identified with his character, Dilton Doiley. According to him, the core of Archies is friendship and the fact that it is set in the '60s makes Menda nostalgic about simpler times. He said, “Riverdale is this small town where everyone knows each other. There is one diner where all the kids go after school to hang out. This made me nostalgic about the days when my entire day was comprised of coming home from school and then going to play. So, I would like to bring back some of the wholesomeness that we have lost.”

Vedang Raina as Reggie Mantle  

If you’ve read Archies comics, then you know that Reggie Mantle is known for his vanity and self-absorption. However, Raina says that in the movie “Zoya has given depth to the character. Behind his too-cool-for-school attitude, he has a big heart”.