Posted in: HBO, TV | Tagged: The Pitt

The Pitt: Ganesh Reflects on Tapping Real Life for Mohan's Anxiety

The Pitt star Supriya Ganesh on her Season 2 journey as Dr. Mohan, tapping into her own anxiety to depict Mohan's panic attack, and more.

To say Dr. Samira Mohan's (Supriya Ganesh) work-life balance was chaotic even by the series' standards on The Pitt would be an understatement. Between trying to stay on top of her patients at Pittsburgh Trauma Medical Center's emergency room, still trying to figure out her place in the medical field in her fourth year, Dr. Michael "Robby" Robinovich (Noah Wyle) trying to keep her focus and on task, and dealing with her overbearing mother who keeps contacting her on shift, it's not surprising she reached her breaking, suffering a panic attack during her shift in season two, episode nine ("3:00 p.m."). By the time we reach its end, we will find that Mohan will have moved on, telling Robby she'll consider going into geriatrics. With Ganesh's departure, the actress spoke with Variety to reflect on Mohan's life with her family, diving deeper into her story and dynamic, how she tapped into her anxiety disorder for Mohan's panic attack, and her future in the R. Scott Gemmill series.

The Pitt: Supriya Ganesh Reflects on Dr. Mohan's Season 2 Journey

As far as Dr. Mohan's long-term plans, "I think she centered a lot of her life plans around going back to New Jersey and having this life there with her mom, because it's really just the two of them left in their family. I think that's part of why she never really felt the need to put roots down in Pittsburgh," Ganesh said. "It was interesting seeing how her mother making a decision to not involve herself in this life plan kind of blew everything up for her."

By having Mohan deal with her ongoing storyline with her mother, it showed a different side of the doctor. "I liked that with this mom interaction, I could make her a bit prickly and a little bit less palatable outside of a doctor-patient interaction," she adds. "She is a little bit socially stunted and awkward and doesn't really have a lot going on outside of work. Because of that, she's pushing people away."

When that pivotal scene came, Ganesh, from Mohan's frequent calls and texts, came, "I panicked," she admits. "I have an anxiety disorder. And I had to sit back and go, 'OK, well, do I really know my panic attacks are coming? No.' They come out of nowhere. I decided to tackle it with that sort of mentality — this is unexpected, but that plays into the reality of what this thing is. I definitely wanted to make sure I was portraying it as accurately and with as much sensitivity as possible, because the few times that I have experienced it, it's just so scary. It really does feel like something's just very deeply, horribly wrong."

On whether Ganesh sees Mohan returning beyond season three, "It's really whatever they end up wanting to do. I'm just so grateful — this whole team took a chance on me. It's my first role in a TV show as a series regular. I couldn't ask for a better introduction to the industry," she said. "If the opportunity comes around and I'm available, absolutely. But ultimately, it's up to them." For more on Ganesh's research, her struggle to separate herself from the role, and making peace with where Mohan is, you can check out the entire interview. Both seasons of The Pitt are available on HBO Max. Season three will release on HBO in 2027.

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