Harry Potter and the mirror of inclusivity 

In our muggle study place, the wizarding world brought magic among BracU students just last winter during the Potterfest. With that memory fresh in mind, the new Harry Potter series can be something of discussion. Holding the bittersweet feelings should we be excited, critical or simply hopeful for this new rendition? 

Potterheads not only accept but also criticise. The most criticism the upcoming series faced so far is the casting of Paapa Esseidu as Severus Snape. Fans believe it to be contradictory to the legitimacy of the books because Snape’s depiction in the novel does not match the new cast. A reddit comment goes, “They couldn’t even get past casting without revealing that they were totally lying about being faithful to the books.” And that isn’t a good start there! It also feels forceful to the fans accepting a completely different version of Snape, especially after Alan Rickman’s unwavering portrayal. Moreover, the bullying of the character can now be perceived as racial. 

Another big criticism that showrunners faced was regarding the casting of the Italian actress Alessia Leoni to play one of the very few characters who were originally of colour, Parvati Patil. Since the casting of Paapa Esseidu, people were expecting the diverse characters to be well represented but this casting left a bitter taste in people’s mouths. One comment from X sums it all up, “Why cast an Italian who looks brown just to play Parvati Patil? They could’ve easily casted an Indian actress. So much for diversity.”
The showrunners wanted to bring inclusivity in a story where there isn’t any major character of colour. Yet with these two criticised casting choices, they pose contradictory statements. Yet we can be optimistic as fans have enjoyed Harry Potter regardless of their backgrounds because it relates to them despite their differences.