Working the silver screen

When Lynbrook resident Sarah Thomas was just a teenager, she knew what her calling was in life. At 15, Thomas said she took a voiceover class at the Learning Annex — a continuing education school in Manhattan — and realized then that she wanted to be an actress. Her road to success, however, has been a tortuous one.

Though Thomas, 24, has landed roles on the television series Law and Order and in movies like Enchanted, Blood Line, The Nanny Diaries, August Rush and the Bollywood film Hastey Hastey, her road to stardom was not an easy one. At 15, Thomas said her family, in particular her mother, was dealing with some personal problems, and Thomas needed to get away. So in 2000, Thomas legally emancipated herself. “At the time, it was the best thing for me to do.” Thomas said she bounced around to four different high schools, and ended up finishing high school in Farmingdale in a group home. Thomas got her own apartment, she said, when she turned 18 and started attending church. “I never really understood it,” Thomas said of practicing a religion. “But I began focusing on grace and forgiving those who hurt me. It was a fresh start.”

About a year later, Thomas saw an advertisement for a background actor for Law and Order. She got the job, and her small part gave her the confidence to search out more roles. In 2007, Thomas auditioned for a role in Hastey Hastey. Bollywood star Raj Pal Yadav was starring in the film and Thomas landed the part as his leading lady. But she wasn’t aware of the caste system that existed in the Bollywood film industry, she said, and soon found herself isolated from the rest of the cast. “Nobody would talk to me,” she said.

After speaking with Pal Yadav and establishing a working relationship with him, the atmosphere on set changed for Thomas. Pal Yadav helped her fit in. “He taught me the ins and out,” she said. “They treated me different until he helped me out.” Thomas said that befriending Pal Yadav has opened the door for her to act in other Bollywood films.