Maitreyi Ramakrishnan Reveals Her Proudest Accomplishments

Hello, How are you doing? Good. Your makeup is so beautiful, thank you so much. I did like, it's so nice. You do anything to your lips.

I just put like charlotte tilbury. Like a little bit of spark. That's what it is.

Tilbury. It's the charlotte tilbury always, because I was obviously looking at Tiktok of you and you always compliment like who he's talking to you before you start.

I mean, if you're worthy of a compliment, you deserve a compliment, you know?

Yeah, you're just like a really nice person too, which is nice.

I try to just be a decent human being. That's that's the bar decent being.

Okay, so we have my little pony make your mark. Did you ever think that you would be an animated pony?

No, no, it's absolutely wild. I've been my animation career so far for voiceover has been pretty, pretty like childhood fulfilling, considered that like, first it was Pixar, you know, that was a childhood dream to work for Pixar, but now also working for my little pony, I love my little pony as a kid. I'm going to be honest. I loved it and now I get to be, I get to have a pony that's insane.

Yeah, and you can just watch it forever and it's just your voice.

Like it's just my voice talking? Like who let my voice sometimes. Like when I'm watching it, it feels like I'm watching like a regular animation show and then my voice comes in and it's just like, oh yeah, that's gonna be so weird.

Yeah, it is a little weird, but she doesn't do you like the pink mohawk and blue strengthen their, I love it.

I love like on like a personal side, I love it because it's just like fun. I love just the color scheme, you know, the white pink and like light turquoise, I like that. But I also like just in general how they've designed all the ponies because they all look so different, you know, like in my little pony, like, you know, history of their designs, um there's never really been like a female pony that looks like zip, you know, like the mohawk like that as like one of the main pony. So it's nice to have that as like a representation for like kids to see and be like, wow, that's a cool style.

Like, and when you found out like you, was it, did you like, did you, were you excited that this was kind of going to be the pony that you are compared to the other ones?

I'm gonna be honest. Yeah, I mean, I, I love Sunny, the like, you know the Alcorn because I love Al acorns. I mean like they're sick. They have like super dope powers there. Unicorn and Pegasus and Earth pony all wrapped into one. So who wouldn't want that? I do love, I will say, I love Izzy's like, she's the unicorn with all the blue hair, I like her long hair. But I will say as soon as I saw like dips, cutie mark with the lightning bolt in the crown. Like, oh yeah, you're, you're the cool pony. You're definitely the key pony. I want to be the cool, I will take the cool pony. That's fine. I guess I'll be the one that's the coolest. They're all great.

Okay. So that's not also to be athletic and good with science. So are you athletic?

Neither literally neither. Um, I know I have started taking dance classes though, so that's cool getting there. Yeah, we're getting there, but definitely on the science, um, standpoint, I sucked at science when I was in school, I dropped it as soon as I could because you just know your strengths and weaknesses, you know, your strengths and weaknesses. I think in that way I think I'm most like Izzy just for like the creativity, the arts and crafts of it all and like pip in the sense of like performing, singing, dancing, like as just being a performer, but I appreciate zips detective skills that I like, I like to think I'm a good detective. I can, I can solve things yeah.

On instagram. Like if you're wondering about things, you're gonna be like a detective, you know, like the FBI agent, like

Exactly. Exactly. I will find you a name and address in a place. It'll be great.

And do you remember the last sport besides dance that you played the last sport or did you, hey,

I did theater in high school because I knew I wasn't going to be on a sports team truly, like, I knew sports was not an option for me, but I actually, I've been wanting to get back into it, but when, um, before, when I was younger, I used to do kickboxing. I really, yeah, see that sort of came out of left field. I see this now. Um, but yeah, that's not something that many, many people know about me, but I do love kickboxing.

There you go. Yeah, zip. Like an episode. If you rewrite one, she just kickboxing.

Yeah, She's not just gloves on her hooves. That'd be great. I don't know how she'd walk, but she'll figure it out, zip.

And okay, so the title is make your mark and you've obviously made it so many different times with all the shows that you've got it and everything like that. But what would you say for your like personal level? When do you think you've most made your mark in your real life?

Okay, Okay. On a personal level. Um, okay, I have to say to that, okay, um, I will say in my career a moment that I was like, well I just did, that was when I was on the cover of time magazine for the time 100 and like, I was in the category of like most influential. I was like this is probably, wow, Whoa. So that was definitely a mark made. Um, because I was just very like, it wasn't just about never have I ever wasn't about like just about a project. It was also just about me as a person in the sense of like all the activism that I like to do and just like what I am as a human being. So that was definitely a moment. The other moment would be actually in high school well before, never have I ever um and it was, I barely ever feel proud of myself, which is not a good thing. It's not something that should be glamorized um being over humble is not good. It doesn't give you enough credit. And then that's bad. So I've tried to work on it now, but in high school I barely ever felt proud of myself, but it was in grade 12 and I finished our theater exam and at that point I like, I was in the musical, I did like regular plays, I did like a lead role. I did like the supporting role. I directed a play, I wrote a play. So I did like, I did it all by the time I graduated from like the beginning of high school to the end and I had this moment where I was like, huh, I'm proud of myself. Yeah. And I actually, like I said it in my head, but I was like, I am talented. I really did that. Yeah. And it's sort of like, at least for me. And I can imagine for many, it's hard to say that to yourself and like believe it and that, that was one of the times like I was a young adult where I was like believing I'm a talented person.

Yeah, that's also that you had like when you're going through high school and emotion and everything like that, like high school sucks sometimes like high school can be great but like the fact that you were able to do that and now the huge career like you were on in times like that, that really everything just like paid off, you know what I mean? Yeah, exactly, but congratulations on the time thing too because that's I mean obviously solid but I was like oh my God and of course our audience does love Never, ever, ever, never have I ever so when you are like when you get a project and the project comes out like with my little pony, do you think that your castmates will text you and be like, hey loved it. Like how do you guys keep in touch and talk about like when other people, like other people are doing good things.

Yeah, I mean I never have I ever found they were all there when I was like we were all in the middle of filming when like the first my little pony special came out on netflix. So like the first part of like make your mark, they saw it and they were like no way, my jury is a pony, you guys see this, she's a pony and like I see them all pulling up like netflix on their phones and like trying to find zip talking and stuff, they're like no way she's a phony, look at her, she's got wings. I'm like that's how animation works guys. Um So everyone's always super supportive and I like to support you know them too and like their endeavors and achievements because that's the nice thing to do. Um And then the my little pony gang almost like so I would film and then also record at the same time and every time I would go for a recording I think between just everyone in the crew like doing all the sound and recording itself, but also like my cast mates as well. The rest of the main five ponies always love to debate if their team better team paxton what they, their favorite characters, they're like, wait, when's the next season? Okay. No, no, no. Might explain to me why does Davy do this? Is this character coming back? And I'm like guys, I know you want spoilers, Hell I'll even give it to you but I know you don't want them and they're like yeah we don't want to, so I love being a part of both families that are just very supportive and worlds colliding like it's fun that my little ponies watching and vice versa.

I mean, um, AJ Bridal and Jenna Warren who voice Pip and Sunny from My Little Pony actually came out to L. A. to come to the Never Have I Ever season three premiere. That was so nice of them. It was so wild. I was like, there's no way, no way you guys just did that. You know, they surprised you didn't know. They messaged me that they were coming and I was like, like we're all Canadian, right? So they really just flew out from Toronto to L. A. to celebrate season three and I was like, oh, that's so nice of you guys and we are going to support our girl. Yeah. Okay. Thank you. Thank you very much. Appreciate it. So that was very kind of them.

If you were to create a new pony. So like, or just another pony in general, you had the power to create a pony. What would the pony look like? What would like, would be a kickboxer? Would they be a theater? My moment?

Oh my God, I what? Okay. Obviously an Alcorn. I want all the powers. Okay. We're power tripping here. Okay. An Alcorn. I want to go for a dark color scheme, you know, sort of like, um, I don't know. I don't know. No, I don't want to, I don't want to base my character off of like a pre-existing one. No, I don't want to be totally unique. The dark edgy color scheme Alcorn and like the cutie mark would be something super cool. Like I'm like the Cuban emojis and like I'm thinking about like random things. Like I'm thinking like the most random list of emojis, like, you know, be cool. A little like gamer pony. I want like a cool dark like color scheme gamer pony and like the little like icon on the, but like little cutie mark can be like, you know that little like video game asteroids looking emoji? The purple like, yeah, something like that.

But I know exactly what you're talking about. It's supposed to look like Space Invaders, like Space Invaders. Little alien guy, right?

Something like that. That would be cool. And they would just be like really into video games. So it's just like, I love video games. That's why I'm picking. That's why I'm picking that.

What is it, Peach? Yeah. Yeah. Cosplaying as Princess Peach. Was that at Comic Con? Where did you do that? Fan Expo? Did anyone recognize you? Like did people,

Yes, some did. Um, some definitely did. A lot of, a lot of like younger kids, like a lot of like young boys and girls noticed me instantly and it was like, damn kids have sharp eyes. Like it's like even when the, when the like depths of the pandemic, people would be like, oh no, that's her and you're like, this is a hat and a mask and you still know it's me. Oh people, I went to a concert the other day and I had my mask on the entire time, and people recognize me from my eyes and I'm like, it's not like they could hear me like, like blasting right now, there's no way you can hear me and they could just see my eyes, I'm like okay, I didn't know I had like, you guys, I don't think I do at all, but okay.

Okay, we're gonna do a little game before we wrap. Okay, cool. Yeah, so there's two scenarios and then you'll pick which one, okay, look at this or that. Okay, this or that. Facetime or text?

Text. Text, text. I don't wanna Facetime. That's too much. It's very intimate.

Um, binge watch the series or watch one episode, like at a time but okay.

Binge watch, but like, with my full focus, like I can't like binge watch and put in the background. I need to like, focus. Yeah.

Gifts of affirmation or physical touch?

Oh, see I'm actually, I'm a quality time gal. I'm a quality time gal. Neither. I like quality time. I don't need gifts, but I'm also like, not a touchy person. No, I just, I don't know why I did this, but that's too much. I like quality time.

Um, go out or stay in?

Go out. Like to go out out on the town.

Fan comments or fan DMs? Which one are you reading more?

Oh, definitely fan comments. I read more fan comments than I do DMs because sometimes even the times those DMs can be a little much. They can be a little a lot and she tries to protect her mental health. So yeah, fan comments.

Um, TikTok edits or IG edits of you?

Oh, um, that's a trick question because half of IG Reels are just from TikTok. So we'll go with TikTok because I know everyone's just re-posting a TikTok into a Reel, let's be real. I do it. I do it. So it's easier just to kill two birds with one stone. She's here.

Um, Never Have I Ever, My Little Pony. It's obviously it's your question.

So cruel. Um, neither. No, I'm kidding. Both. Both. I love them both. Who would I rather be though? I want to be Zip. I like, I like, it'd be cool to be a detective pony. That'd be cool. My next, next season there's just like an animated,

I feel it's, it's interesting because I mean like Zip deals with like saving magic and like protecting pony lives. Devi deals with the chaos that she brings upon herself. Both somehow seem like high stakes.

That's why we just need to come out of it. It'll be great, bringing together.

Well, thank you so much. You're really the best. Like, you're so nice and you're fun and you're funny. So thank you.

Thank you right back at you. It was really nice talking to you.