Emmerdale Spoilers Week beginning 6th May

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Priya Sharma's life begins to spiral out of control on Emmerdale next week as her family's dramas take their toll.

Rocked by her father Rishi's recent revelation, Priya struggles to keep her emotions in check and risks ruining her relationship with David Metcalfe in the process.

Here, Fiona Wade - who plays Priya - teases the tough times ahead for her character and the rest of the Sharmas.

How does Priya feel about Rishi's claim that he is the father of baby Archie?
"Priya is devastated by it. At first she thought it was a joke, because it really was the last thing that she expected to hear. I think it's just absolute shock and devastation. She feels completely sick and traumatised by the whole thing."

Why does the news upset Priya so much?
"I think there's a few different reasons. When it comes down to it, the Sharmas are close and they're quite solid, even though the parents have split up. Priya is like a little princess and she really looks up to her dad - he's never been able to do any wrong in her eyes.

"It's a huge shock when Priya thinks that Rishi is not the man she thought he was. She just feels like her whole security and trust has gone.

"It's also the fact that Priya just can't believe that Rishi would go with Rachel, and believing that she now has a brother who she doesn't even want to think about. This situation is huge for her."

Jai suggests to Rishi that Priya is only upset because this will mean less inheritance money for her! Do you think there's any truth in that?
"Personally, I don't really think that. If we dig deeper into the storyline, Priya might think that at some point - but her initial feeling is just pure shock.

"You'll see that Priya is also concerned with wanting to make sure that this baby really is Rishi's. She doesn't want to believe it's true, and she fears that Rachel is just sponging off her dad."

Is that why Priya wants Rishi to have a paternity test?
"Yeah, I think Priya is just clinging onto any hope that it's not true. She's genuinely ashamed and embarrassed, because her family has a very good reputation and they're doing well for themselves. She can't believe what's happening now. Priya also knows that Rachel is less fortunate, so she reckons that Rachel is just a gold-digger and money-grabber."

How does Georgia react to the news?
"As Georgia and Rishi have been separated for a while, Georgia's main concern is getting Priya and Rishi to make up. She wants to keep the family together."

Rishi tries to make amends by offering to buy Priya and David a new shop as a wedding present. How does Priya feel about that?
"Priya is absolutely furious, especially as David has seen Rishi in secret to discuss this, when he knows how much she doesn't want to talk to her dad right now. With the whole Alicia thing going on too, it just turns Priya crazy. She thinks that everyone she ever believed and trusted has let her down.

"When Rishi suggests buying a new shop, David considers his offer, but Priya is sickened by it as she doesn't want anything from her father now."

Priya's fury later leads to violence when she gets slapped by Rachel and then slaps Alicia herself! Was that fun to film?
"Yes, it was fun to film but it really hurt my arm! I also hit Natalie Anderson by mistake, but fortunately she was fine! I was also worried that I'd hurt Gemma Oaten!

"It was very funny, because we're all girly girls. I've never hit anyone in my life or done anything like that. I think we were all totally out of our comfort zones about how we'd do it. It took forever, because we needed to make sure that it looked right. With me not being very experienced with slapping people, it took a while!"

When David intervenes, his main concern is making sure that Alicia doesn't slap Priya back because it could jeopardise her probation. Is Priya angry over that?
"Yeah, this is massive for her. She's already angry with David because he's lied to her again. He'd said that he was too busy to have lunch with her, when really it was because he was meeting up with Rishi.

"When the fight happens and David defends Alicia, it's a downhill spiral for Priya. She feels more and more alone - she hasn't got anyone. David is the only person she really trusts and loves, but it seems that he's not supporting her. Priya is really upset."

Priya then starts to have doubts over her entire relationship with David. Could this be crunch time for them?
"Yeah, I think there's definitely going to be a question mark over what Priya is going to do next. However, I think the audience will see that Priya really loves David and she has these true feelings.

"For the first time, people will see a vulnerability and insecurity in Priya. Usually she handles things and she's strong, but now you'll see her defence mechanism. She doesn't think she can rely on anyone, so she pushes everyone away for a little bit. David is worried, because he's never seen Priya like this before."

How does David react when Priya starts threatening to call off the wedding?
"David is shocked, because he'd never think that Priya would go through with this. I'm sure he wouldn't want Priya to finish with him and call off the wedding."

With his relationship with Priya seemingly over, David shares a kiss with Alicia. Would Priya feel vindicated if she knew this?
"Definitely. She'd think that the niggling feeling she had was right. It's been there for a while, but Priya tries to ignore it. The thing is, David always denies it - Priya questions it and he reassures her. When you're in love, you do try to accept things."

How did you feel about the big Rishi twist?
"I think when we all read it, it was a great twist to an already great storyline. They've brought in this big twist that's just going to affect the rest of the family and the rest of the village. It includes Rachel's family as well as the Sharmas.

"At the moment, it's affected Priya's relationship with David in a big way. I think it's a really great twist and an exciting one, because the more drama for us as actors, the better!

"It's also hard to watch because it's a great tragedy - Rishi is getting a very hard time when he's just trying to do the right thing. For viewers, I think it'll be really frustrating but also gripping and amazing at the same time."