As Grantchester priests go, Alphy Kotteram (Rishi Nair) stands out. His punchy debut along with his smouldering good looks solidify this but fans will have to wait until episode three (aka the most thrilling vicar debut in the show's history) to see him cause a stir. Still, it is quite possibly the race element that creates the biggest drama of all.
"He's Indian," Mrs C (Tessa Peake-Jones) whispers as though it is the most incredible thing to ever happen in Grantchester, which gives you a taste of how things are about to shape out for the new priest on the block.
Before he's given a chance to converse with the community, assumptions are made of him – assumptions that lead to a violent altercation moments into his arrival.
"The first thing that Alphy does when he sees Geordie (Robson Green) is punch him in the face," Hollyoaks' Nair told Radio Times. "Someone reports a 'swarthy gentleman' has entered the vicarage, and they think he's broken in."
That is not the only prejudice thrust upon him – a convert instead of a born-and-raised Christian, a foreigner, not a lad from Romford – but in some ways his attractiveness creates a dichotomy whereby they don't know whether to swoon at his feet or reject him.
In this, Alphy is different from his predecessor, an unfortunate reality that allows for a different level of nuance to be explored in a show as predominantly white as Grantchester.
What to Read Next
It's not as though the ITV drama hasn't delved into racial tensions before. James Norton's penultimate episode is steeped in racial tension centred around the Civil Rights movement in America.
There's something very different, however, about featuring as the story-of-the-week as opposed to Alphy's lived experience as a brown clergyman battling prejudice on the ground daily, no matter how well written the episode is.
It's the nuance from the microaggressions as well as bigger more explosive moments: how it challenges his faith and his vow to love thy neighbour when that neighbour would rather scowl than embrace you.
There's a kill-them-with-kindness openness to the way that Alphy responds to the rejection and bigotry he is experiencing. But make no mistake he marries this warmth with a bold, firm and confronting style. His approach draws the discrimination out into the open for examination in a way that allows for reflection among his congregation, bringing the struggles of a brown priest in a white '60s community to life.
Alphy's race isn't the only marked difference from Norton's Sidney and Brittney's Will. The former priests' emotional baggage gave off a tortured vicar kind of vibe.
In contrast Alphy as a person (not his oppression) is uncomplicated and light. The tension comes not from the internal but the uphill battle he now has in breaking down people's preconceived notions of him and getting the community to trust in him in order to lead them.
Fans will no doubt weep over the loss of Tom Brittney, especially after that tender tear-jerker of a moment he shared with father-figure Geordie, but even the dynamic between new priest and surly cop refreshes the show.
Both are stubborn and at times yield with great strain. It's clear that Alphy has some trust issues when it comes to the police, which makes him less open to jumping on a case, especially after their explosive first interaction.
Equally Geordie's softer side is buried beneath a lot of hard armour but there's room for both to learn from one another. To develop new understandings and growth.
It's hard to foresee a father-son bond growing from this new relationship but if given the chance this season and this friendship could shape up to be as strong as the ones that came before.
Grantchester season 9 is available to watch now on ITVX and airs weekly on Wednesdays at 9pm on ITV.
TV writer, Digital Spy Janet completed her Masters degree in Magazine Journalism in 2013 and has continued to grow professionally within the industry ever since. For six years she honed her analytical reviewing skills at the Good Housekeeping institute eventually becoming Acting Head of Food testing. She also freelanced in the field of film and TV journalism from 2013-2020, when she interviewed A-List stars such as Samuel L Jackson, Colin Firth and Scarlett Johansson. In 2021 she joined Digital Spy as TV writer where she gets to delve into more of what she loves, watching copious amounts of telly all in the name of work. Since taking on the role she has conducted red carpet interviews with the cast of Bridgerton, covered the BAFTAs and been interviewed by BBC Radio and London Live. In her spare time she also moonlights as a published author, the book Gothic Angel.
