Who Is Banita Sandhu? Bridgerton Fans Believe They've Found Season 3's Sophie
Among the new cast members, Banita Sandhu certainly stands out.
Bridgerton Season 3 will bring a number of new faces to our screens. With the story focusing on the romance between Penelope Featherington and Colin Bridgerton, there's no doubt that most of the new actors will serve as supporting characters to their arcs, playing suitors for Pen and competitors for Colin.
However, there is one new actress who seems to stand out from the rest. Banita Sandhu certainly doesn't fit into the Pen/Colin love story, and many fans think she's actually been cast to play a major role in a future romantic arc.
Who is Banita Sandhu?
Sandhu is a Welsh actress who has worked mostly in Indian movies. Her breakout project was the 2018 Hindi coming-of-age drama October, which put the 26-year-old actress on the radar of critics and audiences. In 2019, Sandhu starred in the first season of The CW sci-fi action series Pandora.
Earlier this year, it became known that Sandhu was cast in Bridgerton to play someone named Sita Malhotra. Since the name was never mentioned in Julia Quinn's original books, fans theorized that it could be a culturally changed name hiding a major character, just like Quinn's Kate Sheffield was changed to Kathani Sharma in Season 2.
Fans think Sita Malhotra is Sophie Beckett
Banita Sandhu is a fairly high-profile actress and has been talking about Bridgerton recently, so fans believe she will be playing a bigger role than a random society debutante. The only major female character that needs to be added in Season 3 is Benedict Bridgerton's love interest, Sophie Beckett.
'[Banita] has such a soft and sweet look to her and I feel like she would really fit the role of Sophie. Her and Luke would also look beautiful together!' a hopeful fan wrote on Reddit.
If the show goes the book route and Season 4 is dedicated to Benedict, Sophie is set to appear soon. Benedict's story is a variation on the Cinderella tale, where a noble gentleman meets a mysterious girl at a ball and falls in love.
In Benedict's case, the ball is a masquerade, and he can't recognize the girl because she's wearing a mask. However, she loses one of her silver gloves and Benedict goes on a quest to find the girl of his dreams.
Fans think Banita Sandhu has a very Sophie-esque face and demeanor and would make a compelling pair for Benedict. But can it be true, or is it just wishful thinking? Only Season 3 will tell.
Source: Reddit.