Shubham Saraf (born March 1992) is a British actor. He earned an ''Evening Standard'' Theatre Award nomination. On television, he is known for his roles in the

Netflix Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a ...

crime anthology '' Criminal: UK'' (2019–), the

BBC One BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's Flagship (broadcasting), flagship network and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News ...

drama ''

A Suitable Boy ''A Suitable Boy'' is a novel by Vikram Seth, published in 1993. With 1,349 pages (1,488 pages in paperback), the English-language book is one of the longest novels published in a single volume. ''A Suitable Boy'' is set in a newly post-indepe ...

'' (2020), and the

Apple TV+ Apple TV+ is an American subscription streaming service owned and operated by Apple Inc. Launched on November 1, 2019, it offers a selection of original production film and television series called Apple Originals. The service was announced ...

series '' Shantaram'' (2022). His films include ''

Honour Honour (British English) or honor (American English; see spelling differences) is the idea of a bond between an individual and a society as a quality of a person that is both of social teaching and of personal ethos, that manifests itself as a ...

'' (2014).

Early life

Saraf was born in

Calcutta Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , the official name until 2001) is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal, on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary business, comm ...

. He spent his early childhood in Mexico and Trinidad and Tobago, before moving to London when he was 7 or 8. He attended

St Paul's School, London St Paul's School is a Selective school, selective Independent school (United Kingdom), independent Day school, day and boarding school for boys aged 13–18, founded in 1509 by John Colet and located on a 43-acre site by River Thames, the Thames i ...

. He graduated with a

Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University o ...

in Economics from the

University of Warwick , mottoeng = Mind moves matter , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £7.0 million (2021) , budget = £698.2 million (202 ...

in 2013. He then spent a year with the

École Philippe Gaulier Philippe Gaulier (born in Paris, 4 March 1943) is a French master clown, pedagogue, and professor of theatre. He is the founder of École Philippe Gaulier, a prestigious French theatre school in Étampes, outside Paris. He studied under Jacques ...

in Paris before going on to graduate with a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four yea ...

in Acting from the

Guildhall School of Music and Drama The Guildhall School of Music and Drama is a conservatoire and drama school located in the City of London, United Kingdom. Established in 1880, the school offers undergraduate and postgraduate training in all aspects of classical music and jaz ...

in 2017.

Career

Saraf appeared in the 2014 films ''

'' and '' The Cut''. He made his professional stage debut in 2017 as revolutionary

Dinesh Gupta Dinesh Chandra Gupta ( bn, দিনেশ চন্দ্র গুপ্ত ''Dinesh Chôndro Gupto'') or Dinesh Gupta (6 December 1911 – 7 July 1931) was an Indian revolutionary against British rule in India, who is noted for launching a ...

in ''Lions and Tigers'' at the

Sam Wanamaker Playhouse The Sam Wanamaker Playhouse is an indoor theatre forming part of Shakespeare's Globe, along with the Globe Theatre on Bankside, London. Built making use of 17th-century plans for an indoor theatre, the playhouse recalls the layout and style of th ...

. In 2018, he appeared in the

political thriller ''

Bodyguard A bodyguard (or close protection officer/operative) is a type of security guard, government law enforcement officer, or servicemember who protects a person or a group of people — usually witnesses, high-ranking public officials or officers ...

'' as PR adviser Tahir Mahmood. He also had stage roles in a gender-swapped version of ''

Hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play, with 29,551 words. Set in Denmark, the play depi ...

'' at

Shakespeare's Globe Shakespeare's Globe is a reconstruction of the Globe Theatre, an Elizabethan playhouse for which William Shakespeare wrote his plays, in the London Borough of Southwark, on the south bank of the River Thames. The original theatre was built in ...

and ''An Adventure''

Bush Theatre The Bush Theatre is located in the Passmore Edwards Public Library, Shepherd's Bush, in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham. It was established in 1972 as a showcase for the work of new writers. The Bush Theatre strives to create a sp ...

. The following year, Saraf began starring as Detective Constable Kyle Petit in the

crime anthology '' Criminal: UK''. He was in the main cast of the

drama miniseries ''

'' as Nawabzada Firoz Khan. He appeared in '' Three Sisters'' at the

Almeida Theatre The Almeida Theatre, opened in 1980, is a 325-seat producing house with an international reputation, which takes its name from the street on which it is located, off Upper Street, in the London Borough of Islington. The theatre produces a di ...

and ''

Romeo and Juliet ''Romeo and Juliet'' is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare early in his career about the romance between two Italian youths from feuding families. It was among Shakespeare's most popular plays during his lifetime and, along with ''Ham ...

'' at the National Theatre. In 2022, Saraf starred as Prabhu Kharre in the

adaptation of '' Shantaram'' and played

Nathuram Godse Nathuram Vinayak Godse (19 May 1910 – 15 November 1949) was the assassin of Mahatma Gandhi. He was a Hindu nationalist from Maharashtra who shot Gandhi in the chest three times at point blank range at a multi-faith prayer meeting in ...

in ''

The Father and the Assassin ''The Father and the Assassin'' is a play written by Anupama Chandrasekhar. It tells the story of Nathuram Godse, a follower of Gandhi who would go on to shoot him. The play premiered on 12 May 2022 at the National Theatre in London, directed b ...

'', also at the National, the latter of which earned Saraf an ''Evening Standard'' Theatre Award nomination.

Filmography

Film

Television

Stage

Awards and nominations

References

External links

*
Shubham Saraf
at Insight {{DEFAULTSORT:Saraf, Shubham Living people 1992 births Alumni of the Guildhall School of Music and Drama Alumni of the University of Warwick British male actors of Asian descent Indian emigrants to England Male actors from Kolkata Male actors from London People educated at St Paul's School, London English male television actors English male stage actors