Shubham Maheshwari on his TV Debut, Onset Lessons and Loving His Craft

Words and Videography: Charlotte Amy Landrum | Photography: Lewis Vorn | Creative Direction: Ione Gamble | Special thanks to: Mackenzie Rutledge and Allie Hall

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This is part of our cover feature on your new favourite TV show, We Were Liars. To read the full story and enter the world of The Liars, click here. 

For the majority of us, there have been countless times we see an open call or a job listing and scroll on, accepting our assumed fate of being rejected, or even worse, never hearing back. Maybe it’s because we’re scared of change, can’t be bothered writing a cover letter, or simply think “I don’t have enough experience”. Shubham Maheshwari and his journey of starring in the highly anticipated adaptation of We Were Liars couldn’t be a better example of why you should never do the above, because you might just get the call back and spend the summer of your life with the Sinclairs.

In his very first television role, Shubham plays Gat Patil in We Were Liars, the only member of the four Liars who isn’t part of the Sinclair family and doesn’t come from the same ridiculously wealthy background. He attends the island as his uncle, Ed, is in a relationship with Carrie Sinclair, the mother of fellow Lair Johnny. Being from Indian descent, and with both of these aspects of his identity combined, he is faced with disdain from certain members of the Sinclair family - particularly his best friend-turned-lover Cadence’s grandfather. Gat’s character is a core part of We Were Liars, not just because of the glorious drama, but because of his social consciousness contrasting against the out-of-touch Sinclair family, the show is much more than just another gross display of wealth on TV.

Below I sit down with Shubham over Zoom to talk about the process of being cast as Gat, not letting fans down and working beside his fellow Liars. 

Polyester: So this was your TV debut and your first big project, was it what you expected it to be?

Shubham Maheshwari: I honestly didn't know what to think. I didn't know what to make of it. I'd never been on a set before, so this was a very first time experience, and I had nothing to compare it to. I came into this thinking I'm ready to expect anything and everything. One thing that I did anticipate is that it's going to be a lot of hard work, but the truth is that I think when you do what you love, it doesn't really feel like hard work, it just feels like fun. I kind of came into it with no expectations, but left with such amazing memories.

What was the process of getting the role like?

It was through Backstage. I didn't have any sort of representation. I didn't have a manager or have an agent. I didn't know the roadmap towards getting into an industry like this. I didn't know I could ever do this professionally. I was fortunate that I saw the We Were Liars open casting call at a time when I was actively applying for things on Backstage, because there were periods where I wouldn't. Then many auditions later, I got the part.

That must have been so, so exciting.

I didn't believe that I got it until I actually came on set. That's how my brain works. I was like, “It’s not official, it's not official, it's not official.” And then, yeah, it blew my mind. Once we started the work, it was awesome. 

How did you prepare for the role? 

The cool thing about this project was that there was a book. There was an abundance of sources. I read the book twice, and then the conversations that I had with Julie Plec and Carina Adly MacKenzie who were the executive producers, and also E. Lockhart who's not just the author of We Were Liars but an executive producer too, who helped align what my vision of Gat was, and what their vision of the character was. 

What was your favourite day on set?

It's hard to pick one. I think I had the most fun in scenes when it was the entire Sinclair family together because I was getting to see such brilliant actors at work. I'm getting to see their process. That was really an incredible learning experience. Gat wouldn't really speak up much when it's a big family gathering because he felt out of place, so I didn't have too many lines and could really just sit and watch these amazing people do their thing and learn.  

It must have been intense spending the summer engrossed in the We Were Liars story. How did you manage to separate that from your downtime?

I think being in a beautiful place definitely helps. Nova Scotia was so lovely. It helps that the places that we were coming to were, because of how the story goes, really grand, beautiful, and scenic. Travelling Nova Scotia, travelling Halifax, travelling around in house, and checking the city out was just the way we killed time.

In what ways did you relate and not relate to your character?

Being from India but not being born and raised in India - because Gat was born and raised in New York and I was born and raised in Dubai, there’s that idea of not being in your home country. In the story, he talks about his experience of going back to India and how much he loved it and I completely relate to that. I think not being born and raised there makes you appreciate your home country more. 

Yet he’s also 16 and knows that he wants to be a journalist or a foreign correspondent. At 16, I was just a mess. I had no idea what I wanted to do. He's definitely more planned out than I was in that regard.

Do you have any words for the We Were Liars fans?

I'm very grateful that I got to be a part of this story. I know how much they love this book, especially because when the cast release came out, we got so much love, and I'm so grateful for that, and I want to thank them. I want them to know that we took responsibility in making sure that we won’t let them down and will hopefully exceed their expectations.