Amazon Freevee has given a straight-to-series order to “The Pradeeps of Pittsburgh,” starring Emmy nominee and SAG Award winner Naveen Andrews (“The Dropout”), comedian Sindhu Vee (“Starstruck”) and Tony nominee Megan Hilty (“Smash”). The original comedy is inspired by the personal experiences of Emmy-nominated Vijal Patel (“Black-ish,” “The Middle”), who serves as writer, showrunner and executive producer.
The series’ logline follows the Pradeep family and “the humorous events of their first few months after moving to America from India.” Told through hilarious (and often conflicting) flashbacks from an interrogation room, the Pradeeps quickly find themselves embroiled — romantically, personally and professionally — with a polar-opposite neighborhood family, leading to a predicament with many surprising twists.
The eight-episode half-hour series is produced by Sony Pictures Television and Amazon Studios. Executive producers are Daytime Emmy winner Sara Gilbert (“Roseanne”), Mandy Summers (“That ’90s Show”) and Emmy winner Tom Werner (“That ’70s Show”). Michael Showalter of Semi-Formal Productions is also an executive producer and will direct the pilot.
“This show is from a very personal place, and explores the many facets of the immigrant struggle,” Patel said in a statement. “As my parents say, the pain got funnier over time—like wine.”
Lauren Anderson, head of AVOD original content and programming at Amazon Studios, added, “The Pradeeps of Pittsburgh shines a comedic light on the centuries-old, universally relatable first-generation experience. We look forward to sharing Vijal’s personally inspired story—filled with heart, humility, and humor—with the Freevee audience.”
Jason Clodfelter, co-president of Sony Pictures Television, also said, “Vijal created not only a rich world, but a highly personal look at the immigrant experience, grounded in heart and the outrageousness of real-life families. We are thrilled to see his story come to life with our partners at Freevee.”
Below are the character descriptions for series regulars and recurring roles:
- Series Regulars:
Naveen Andrews as Mahesh Pradeep, the patriarch of the Pradeep family. A brilliant engineer who uprooted his family to America for a business opportunity. - Sindhu Vee as Sudha Pradeep. Intelligent and self-assured, Sudha is the matriarch of the Pradeep family, but her brewing feud with her neighbors is about to test her in new ways.
- Sahana Srinivasan as Bhanu Pradeep, a rebellious teen trying to get out from under her mother’s thumb. Unfortunately, her rebellion gets her mixed up with the one person her mother can’t abide — the neighbor’s son.
- Arjun Sriram as Kamal Pradeep, described as an “epic mama’s boy, he loves following rules and believes narcs are just heroes who tell the truth.”
- Ashwin Sakthivel as Vinod Pradeep. He loves all things American and is excited for their new life in Pittsburgh. He’s quick to make friends, but in dealing with bullies he looks to the nonviolent tactics of his hero Gandhi.
- Megan Hilty as Janice Mills, a sexy suburban Christian who loves to preach forgiveness, but rarely forgives others.
- Ethan Suplee as Jimbo Mills, a gregarious “guy’s guy” who tries to befriend the guys in the Pradeep family.
- Nicholas Hamilton as Stu Mills, the Pradeeps’ teenage neighbor who spends most of his time in the garage. His “flannel hottie” vibe ensnares the Pradeeps’ teenage daughter from the get-go.
Recurring roles:
- Pete Holmes as Dark Suit, a rookie interrogator whose inexperience and innocence drives his partner nuts.
- Romy Rosemont as Light Suit, the lead investigator in the Pradeep case. Ready for retirement, she’s uptight and ruthless in her tactics.
