Aarti Mann



Aarti Majumdar (born March 3, 1978), better known by her stage name  Aarti Mann, is an American  actress. She has starred in several  television programs, including a part in the sci-fi drama  Heroes. She is best known for playing the role of  Priya Koothrappali in  The Big Bang Theory.

Early life and education
Mann was born in Connecticut in March 1978, and is of Indian Bengali Hindu ancestry. Mann is a truncated version of Mankad, her married name. She moved to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania as a young child. Mann's father died while she was in high school. Growing up, her family lived in Mt. Lebanon and Wexford before settling in Fox Chapel, Pennsylvania where her mother, Vasanti Majumdar, an obstetrician/gynecologist out of UPMC Passavant, still lives.

Mann graduated from Shady Side Academy, Fox Chapel and studied film at New York University.

Career
Mann began acting in the mid 2000s, initially playing minor roles. She uses both Aarti Majumdar and Aarti Mann as her professional names. I'm the daughter of two Indian, immigrant doctors and I have an older sister and younger brother and none of us has pursued medicine as a career. We're all over the artistic side of things. Mann's brother Nishad is a journalist and her sister Kruti helped influence her decision to switch to acting. Kruti, who also lives in Los Angeles, is a filmmaker and cast Ms. Mann in her 2006 film The Memsahib. While filming her scenes, Ms. Mann said she "got bit by the bug" to act and enrolled in acting classes in Los Angeles.

Mann booked a national commercial for Volvo and other roles followed, including a part in the web/TV series "quarterlife," which aired briefly on NBC in 2008. She was also a guest star on "Heroes" in 2009. Mann appeared in the season two winter premiere of "Suits" on the USA Network. Mann was originally cast in the role of Stephanie for the USA pilot "Paging Dr. Freed", but was let go after the table read, because the network envisioned a different type for the character.