36-year old Asian Indian-American actress-writer-director-photographer Rayna Tharani [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8] Crazy Nude Debut (T&A) in The Young Pope [S1E6]

It was too short, too ‘montage-y’ but dammit, it was hard-on memorable. I believe this is the first simulated DP for a credited actress on a mainstream prime cable show (don’t hesitate to point out if Miss Tharani has already walked around the nudity street before TYP or there was a DP scene on another show involving an actress listed at end credits).
On more than one occasion I’ve mentioned about actors/performers going wild on foreign lands or doing something out of character for Euro filmmakers (especially Americans). I’ve not heard of Rayna before I saw her name among the TYP cast via IMDB. I don’t know enough about her personal background to question her judgment in accepting and performing rather explicit scene in the name of acting.
Here’s what I know of the caramel hottie (thanks to the Internet). She’s a talented writer. Wrote about being an independent woman. Female empowerment. Women’s right. She’s also talked about going against Indian traditions and culture in a rational manner rather than adopting a confrontational and over the top rebellious approach. Has self-image issues and clearly had some work done on her face and body. Traveling around Europe from mid of last year after losing mom to cancer in most heartbreaking manner. Degree in Bachelor of Fine Arts (B.F.A.), Journalism (San Diego State University-California State University). Repped by actress-cum-agent Courtney Peldon (Aqua Talent Agency). A small screen veteran having been in the biz for more than a decade, appearing in numerous guestie roles. 
Rayna has done handful of racy scenes in her time as an actress but nothing to this extent. Sweet Lordy Lord! What prompted Rayna to take on a part that required her to get her tits out, perform a heavy-hitting sex scene and shockingly, porn-like sexual position that surely going to trouble her loved ones once they caught up on the show at some point? The loss of her mom surely a factor to be considered, leaving her emotionally vulnerable with Dad not in the picture. Perhaps for the first time Rayna truly appreciated life-is-short mantra which is often something you parrot to others without ever understanding what it really means. Relationship problems around the same time that led to ex-BF moving on, leaving her further devastated?  Women tend to make impulsive decisions in that kind of situation.
For Miss Tharani, she just wanted to run far away and start afresh. That’s what Rayna did by ending up in Europe and keeping herself busy by taking on roles she wouldn’t have normally considered back home. Maybe for Rayna in terms of her acting career, it meant stepping way, way, way out of her comfort zone. Again, mere speculations on my part. I’ve zero info on Rayna life and career history. She could have worked as a stripper in her younger days. Maybe an escort to financially support herself during her time in college? Heck, she might even have done porn, appearing in handful of flicks pre-Internet game changer.
Hopefully she writes about the ‘experience’ on her blog (http://www.raynawrites.com).

Mega.Co.Nz

http://www.raynatharani.com/

Rayna Tharani is an actress, writer and director known for films such as For Colored Girls. She has appeared in many television shows including Rosewood (FOX) NCIS (CBS) Criminal Minds (CBS) Days of Our Lives (NBC) among others. She moved to Los Angeles as a dancer upon graduating from San Diego State with a bachelors in Fine Arts, Journalism and English Lit. She became a member of the LA Poets Society after releasing her first book: Pages of Me, a lovesick journey in 2015. Rayna will make her directorial debut in 2016 with her documentary Aphrodite Rising. She is of East Indian, and Indonesian heritage. She’s also fluent in Sindhi. Her Documentary “THIS SIDE of HER” was nominated for best documentary in July 2016, MADRID, SPAIN.
“I am an actress, writer, director, photographer based in LA but able to travel anywhere for work. I am currently on Days of Our Lives in the role of “Navidad.” My directorial debut “Aphrodite Rising” will be premiering early next year. I am the founder of Lights Out Photography LA . Writer of the HopeLess Romantic Blog on wordpress. Author of the essay book “A Lovesick Journey.” And have 4 scripts being pitched and optioned: “Inhale” the series, “Khandaan,” pilot script and “Chasing Butterflies” as a feature. I am the director of Aphrodite Rising which is a series of black and white portraits and intimate interviews. As a writer, I am responsible for the content and creativity with my blog the HopeLess Romantic which has many subscribers, mostly female.”

NAKED (ESSAY) by Rayna

NAKED…

The independence you developed to find your way is this world

Is now the dependence hindering your way

When you left you had the full weight of belief behind you

Now it seems impossible to trust in anything

If I could believe now

Like I believed then

That my happiness is necessary for my survival

My nature would return back to the impulses that pushed me forward

Instead of the pensiveness that has me continuously retreat

Back into the corner

Back into the shell I seem to inhabit now

A shell that has grown so deep

So empty

To make way for the cherishing I have earned

Shared life is lived

All else is just preparation

…So I ask Myself

Can I see my dreams the way I did before aging disintegrated my vision?

Am I courageous enough to challenge life to give me what I deserve?

Can I hold the past up to the future to show me the truth of the present?

And when all else fails, can I trust myself the way I did before I fell the very first time?

CULTURE CLASH

I have always been able to support another person, be it a stranger, lover, friend or family member. I will always encourage someone to go after what is in their heart. I have always had the ability to listen to someone minus of judgement because understanding the human condition is what makes me tick. However, I am almost positive (according to the ideal,) that I have never purely empowered someone. If it was a test, I would probably score ninety- eight out of a hundred in my best moments. I can rest with the knowing that I am almost there.
Now why would someone like myself, who is an avid cheerleader of dreams and free will still not be able to completely empower another individual? In other words, why haven’t I acquired the last two percent on the test?
I grew up in a culture where empowering women was not the norm. That is not to say that there are not many powerful Indian women, but I will bet my life that their rise was challenged every step of the way by cultural beliefs that should have never existed. Women are kept safe as objects rather than pushed out into the world to find their way. And this is perfectly fine for some, but for me it is a metaphoric cage. It’s common to go from your father’s house (to college) then to your husband’s house. But what happens when the man who you were supposed to call “father,” relinquished his responsibilities at birth and the “husband,” hasn’t shown up yet? These circumstances took me out of the cultural way of doing things, and I’m glad- because now I can live my life the way I want to.
The only problem has been the endless doubt that plagues me night after night…. I am constantly questioning my path: “am I doing the right thing?” “How long can one truly survive in an artist’s lifestyle with no security?” “Did I make a childish mistake by following my heart blindly and oblivious to better judgement?” And every time I quiet myself after one of these insomnia spirals, I realize that these aren’t really my questions. They are my cultural and familial doubts from childhood. This in fact is not my voice in my head. It is the voice of the legions of disapproving women that come before me telling me I am wrong about life, I am wrong about myself, and I am not to be trusted because I, myself, am not enough.
There is another side to this story which is responsible for the ninety- eight percent of being able to empower. My mother was a rock when it came to empowering me. It wasn’t always like this though. As a child she didn’t really understand me. It was only after a very destructive and isolated bout of teenage rebellion she knew her child. She grew out of her fears of losing me knowing if she didn’t she would actually lose me.
She empowered me to chase my dreams, leave the nest, fall in love and keep my independence even when married. She had her own clashes with our culture so she pushed me to “fight the establishment.” She made me get out and go get what I wanted from life no matter how hard. She believed in me before I believed in myself. She knew the spirit of her child, and she would not let any cultural bullshit destroy that.
I am lucky. I have been empowered purely. And for me still empowering another human being especially a lover can be difficult. I have found that when you truly empower another person, in a way you are saying goodbye to them. Much like my mother did when I moved out at seventeen. An empowered person, especially a newly empowered person, will want to go out to experience and expand. The fear there is that, “I granted someone wings just for them to fly away from me- forever.”   My mother did that for me, and I never moved back home, but I also have never loved anyone that much in my lifetime. She didn’t let her limitations limit my life. I aspire to be able to do that just as soon as I can for everyone that I love…
Now back to the culture clash. I realize there is an expiration date on how long you can blame a person, place or thing for your own dysfunctions. But it wasn’t until the immediate past that I have recognized the problem. Confidence is key in being able to empower and feeling empowered yourself.  I define “confidence,” as: a man or a woman devoid of the need for validation, acceptance or approval from anyone but themselves. One who is in full knowledge and appreciation of their own “shortcomings.” I believe confidence to be either the holy grail or missing link of one’s life.

I’d rather be like my mom. I’d rather love someone past my limitations because I see what’s in their heart rather than what’s on my mind. I know what that meant to me. I know the beauty of not being judged or criticized for my ideas, and I would love to be that type of a woman regardless of culture, caste or conditioning.