Anjli Mohindra () is an English stage, screen and

voice-over Voice-over (also known as off-camera or off-stage commentary) is a production technique used in radio, television, filmmaking, theatre, and other media in which a descriptive or expository voice that is not part of the narrative (i.e., non- ...

actress and writer. She is best known for her television roles as Rani Chandra in the ''

Doctor Who ''Doctor Who'' is a British science fiction television series broadcast by the BBC since 1963. The series, created by Sydney Newman, C. E. Webber and Donald Wilson (writer and producer), Donald Wilson, depicts the adventures of an extraterre ...

'' spin-off '' The Sarah Jane Adventures'' (2008–2011) and would-be suicide bomber Nadia Ali in ''

Bodyguard A bodyguard (or close protection officer/operative) is a type of security guard, government law enforcement officer, or servicemember who protects an very important person, important person or group of people, such as high-ranking public offic ...

'' (2018). Her other television roles include Surgeon Lieutenant Tiffany Docherty in ''Vigil'' (2021), Detective Constable Josie Chancellor in '' Dark Heart'' (2016–2018) and Archie in '' The Lazarus Project'' (2022–2023).

Early life

Mohindra was born in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

to immigrant parents of Indian descent. She grew up in West Bridgford,

Nottinghamshire Nottinghamshire (; abbreviated ''Notts.'') is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. The county is bordered by South Yorkshire to the north-west, Lincolnshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south, and Derbyshire to the west. Th ...

, apart from a four-year period on a military base in

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

, where she was the only ethnic minority child out of 2,000 students at an Armed Forces school. According to Mohindra, her family is Hindu Punjabi. Her father was raised in

Kenya Kenya, officially the Republic of Kenya, is a country located in East Africa. With an estimated population of more than 52.4 million as of mid-2024, Kenya is the 27th-most-populous country in the world and the 7th most populous in Africa. ...

when it was a British colony and had a clerical job in the

British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

for several years. Her mother was born in

Punjab, India Punjab () is a States and union territories of India, state in northwestern India. Forming part of the larger Punjab, Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, the state is bordered by the States and union territories of India, Indian states ...

and arrived in the UK from India at the age of 18 to further her education, working variously as a

court clerk A court clerk (British English: clerk to the court or clerk of the court ; American English: clerk of the court or clerk of court ) is an officer of the court whose responsibilities include maintaining records of a court and administering oaths ...

, bank manager, postmistress, pub owner and English

tutor Tutoring is private academic help, usually provided by an expert teacher; someone with deep knowledge or defined expertise in a particular subject or set of subjects. A tutor, formally also called an academic tutor, is a person who provides assis ...

. Mohindra has a sister and a brother. In a 2018 interview about her personal style, Mohindra said that she had been a tomboy growing up, sometimes wearing her brother's hand-me-down clothes. Mohindra attended Jesse Gray Primary School and West Bridgford School. She later trained in acting at the

Central Junior Television Workshop The Television Workshop, formerly known as the Central Junior Television Workshop, is a British organisation that offers training for young people in performance skills for television, film, radio and theatre. Open to anybody between the ages of 7 ...

Nottingham Nottingham ( , East Midlands English, locally ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, East Midlands, England. It is located south-east of Sheffield and nor ...

Career

2005–2011: Early career

Mohindra's television acting career began in an episode of ITV's long-running

soap opera A soap opera (also called a daytime drama or soap) is a genre of a long-running radio or television Serial (radio and television), serial, frequently characterized by melodrama, ensemble casts, and sentimentality. The term ''soap opera'' originat ...

Coronation Street ''Coronation Street'' (colloquially referred to as ''Corrie'') is a British television soap opera created by ITV Granada, Granada Television and shown on ITV (TV network), ITV since 9 December 1960. The programme centres on a cobbled, terraced ...

'' in 2005, where she played Dev Alahan's daughter Shareen after being turned down for another, larger role. This appearance was soon followed by small, one-episode parts in the

medical Medicine is the science and Praxis (process), practice of caring for patients, managing the Medical diagnosis, diagnosis, prognosis, Preventive medicine, prevention, therapy, treatment, Palliative care, palliation of their injury or disease, ...

soap opera '' Doctors'' (2006),

teen sitcom A teen situation comedy, or teen sitcom, is a subgenre of comedic television program targeted towards young people (Preadolescence, tweens, Adolescence, teenagers and, to a lesser extent, Young adult, young adults). In general, these types of prog ...

The Inbetweeners ''The Inbetweeners'' is a British coming-of-age television sitcom, which originally aired on E4 from 2008 to 2010 and was created and written by Damon Beesley and Iain Morris. The series follows the misadventures of suburban teenager Willi ...

'' (2008), police procedural '' Law & Order: UK'' (2009) and medical drama ''

Holby City ''Holby City'' (stylised on-screen as HOLBY CIY) is a British medical drama television series that aired weekly on BBC One. It was created by Tony McHale and Mal Young as a Spin-off (media), spin-off from the established BBC medical drama '' ...

'' (2010). She also appeared in two episodes of the comedy drama '' Beaver Falls'' (2011). Mohindra played her first regular role as aspiring journalist Rani Chandra in the ''

'' spin-off series '' The Sarah Jane Adventures'' (2008–2011) on

children's television Children's television series (or children's television shows) are Television show, television programs designed specifically for Child, children. They are typically characterised by easy-going content devoid of sensitive or adult themes and are ...

channel

CBBC CBBC is a British free-to-air Public service broadcasting in the United Kingdom, public broadcast children's television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It is also the brand used for all BBC content for children aged 6 to 12. Its sister c ...

. She was introduced in the second series as a replacement for Yasmin Paige, who left the series to complete her

GCSEs The General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) is an academic qualification in a range of subjects taken in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, having been introduced in September 1986 and its first exams taken in 1988. State schools ...

. Mohindra continued to play the role in the subsequent three series until the last episode of the show, broadcast in October 2011.

2012–present: Post-''The Sarah Jane Adventures'' career

In 2012, Mohindra appeared in an episode of the longest-running medical drama series in the world, '' Casualty''. Soon after, she landed parts in two episodes of '' The Missing'' (2014), a

BAFTA The British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA, ) is an independent trade association and charity that supports, develops, and promotes the arts of film, television and video games in the United Kingdom. In addition to its annual awa ...

and

Golden Globe The Golden Globe Awards are awards presented for excellence in both international film and television. It is an annual award ceremony held since 1944 to honor artists and professionals and their work. The ceremony is normally held every Januar ...

-nominated child-abduction thriller starring

Tchéky Karyo Tchéky Karyo (; born Baruh Djaki Karyo; 4 October 1953) is a Turkish-born French actor and musician. Beginning his career as an actor on stage in classical and contemporary works, he began to work as a character actor in films in the 1980s. He h ...

, and six episodes of ''

Cucumber The cucumber (''Cucumis sativus'') is a widely-cultivated creeping vine plant in the family Cucurbitaceae that bears cylindrical to spherical fruits, which are used as culinary vegetables.Russell T Davies's series about a middle-aged gay man from

Manchester Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...

. Mohindra played a leading role in four 15-minute episodes of the

BBC iPlayer BBC iPlayer (stylised as iPLAYER or BBC iPLAYER) is a video on demand service from the BBC. The service is available Over-the-top media service, over-the-top on a wide range of devices, including Mobile phone, mobile phones and Tablet computer ...

romcom ''My Jihad'' (2014–2015), described as "a tender and funny love story exploring the unfolding relationship between a young

Muslim Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...

couple". She then made her feature film debut in '' Miss You Already'' (2015), starring Toni Collette and Drew Barrymore, followed by supporting roles in two ITV shows, ''

Paranoid Paranoia is an instinct or thought process that is believed to be heavily influenced by anxiety, suspicion, or fear, often to the point of delusion and irrationality. Paranoid thinking typically includes persecutory beliefs, or beliefs of con ...

'' (2016) and '' Bancroft'' (2017). In 2018, Mohindra played Nadia Ali in Jed Mercurio's political thriller ''

'' (2018). The series received multiple

Emmy The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the year, each with their own set of rules and award catego ...

and

nominations; its finale was reported to be the most-watched BBC drama in 10 years. Mohindra initially declined the role until she learned there would be more depth to her character than she assumed. The same year, she starred alongside Tom Riley in the ITV crime drama '' Dark Heart'' and guested in DC's '' Legends of Tomorrow'' as magical shapeshifter Charlie. Mohindra starred as an ambitious

radio producer A radio producer oversees the making of a radio show. The job title covers several different job descriptions: *Content producers or executive producers oversee and orchestrate a radio show or feature. The content producer might organize music cho ...

Mark Gatiss Mark Gatiss (; born 17 October 1966) is an English actor, comedian, screenwriter, director, producer and novelist. Best known for his acting work on stage and screen as well as for co-creating television shows with Steven Moffat, he has received ...

's take on the classic Christmas ghost story, '' The Dead Room'' (2018), alongside Simon Callow. From 2006 to 2019, she played in 11 theatrical productions. Her stage work includes David Hare's '' Behind the Beautiful Forevers'' (2014) and Shahid Nadeem's ''Dara'' (2015), both professionally recorded and broadcast through National Theatre Live, as well as

Oscar Wilde Oscar Fingal O'Fflahertie Wills Wilde (16 October 185430 November 1900) was an Irish author, poet, and playwright. After writing in different literary styles throughout the 1880s, he became one of the most popular and influential playwright ...

's '' The Importance of Being Earnest'' (2012) and

Michael Frayn Michael Frayn, FRSL (; born 8 September 1933) is an English playwright and novelist. He is best known as the author of the farce ''Noises Off'' and the dramas ''Copenhagen (play), Copenhagen'' and ''Democracy (play), Democracy''. Frayn's novel ...

's '' Noises Off'' (2019). In 2019, Mohindra appeared as a regular lead in the ITV drama '' Wild Bill''. She later played the Queen of the Skithra in the ''Doctor Who'' episode " Nikola Tesla's Night of Terror" (2020). Since 2022, Mohindra has also reprised her role of Rani from ''The Sarah Jane Adventures'' in several ''Doctor Who'' audio drama spin-offs from

Big Finish Productions Big Finish Productions is a British company that produces books and radio drama, audio plays (released straight to compact disc and for download in MP3 and m4b format) based, primarily, on science fiction properties. These include ''Doctor Who'' ...

, as well as in three episodes of '' Doctor Who: Redacted'' (2022), a ten-part

podcast A podcast is a Radio program, program made available in digital format for download over the Internet. Typically, a podcast is an Episode, episodic series of digital audio Computer file, files that users can download to a personal device or str ...

drama from

BBC Sounds BBC Sounds is an Over-the-top media service, over-the-top audio streaming media, streaming and download service from the BBC that includes live radio broadcasts, Streaming media, audio on demand, and podcasts. The service is available on a wide ...

featuring the Thirteenth Doctor, played by

Jodie Whittaker Jodie Auckland Whittaker (born 17 June 1982) is an English actress. She is best known for her roles on television as Beth Latimer in ''Broadchurch'' (2013–2017) and the Thirteenth Doctor in ''Doctor Who'' (2017–2022, 2025). She came to pro ...

. Mohindra has played other characters in audio dramas featuring the Fifth, Sixth and Eighth Doctors over the years. Mohindra won a place on the

Royal Court A royal court, often called simply a court when the royal context is clear, is an extended royal household in a monarchy, including all those who regularly attend on a monarch, or another central figure. Hence, the word ''court'' may also be app ...

's Young Writers' Programme in 2016. During

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

, she made her writing debut with a short film called ''The People Under the Moon'' (2020), produced entirely during lockdown and starring Gwilym Lee as a medic who joins a dating app. In 2021, she appeared alongside Suranne Jones in Tom Edge's '' Vigil'', playing Tiffany Docherty, the medical officer on board a nuclear submarine which becomes the subject of a murder investigation. The series quickly became the BBC's most-watched new drama of the year. The following year, she appeared in the

Netflix Netflix is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service. The service primarily distributes original and acquired films and television shows from various genres, and it is available internationally in multiple lang ...

period

spy thriller Spy fiction is a genre of literature involving espionage as an important context or plot device. It emerged in the early twentieth century, inspired by rivalries and intrigues between the major powers, and the establishment of modern intelli ...

'' Munich – The Edge of War'' as a British diplomatic secretary embroiled in the negotiations at the 1938 Munich conference and then had the lead role in the

Sky The sky is an unobstructed view upward from the planetary surface, surface of the Earth. It includes the atmosphere of Earth, atmosphere and outer space. It may also be considered a place between the ground and outer space, thus distinct from ...

science fiction Science fiction (often shortened to sci-fi or abbreviated SF) is a genre of speculative fiction that deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts. These concepts may include information technology and robotics, biological manipulations, space ...

drama '' The Lazarus Project'', described as a "gripping exploration of memory, fate and the limits of love". In the series she played Archie, who recruits Paapa Essiedu's character George into a secret organisation that has the power to turn back time if the world is threatened by

extinction Extinction is the termination of an organism by the death of its Endling, last member. A taxon may become Functional extinction, functionally extinct before the death of its last member if it loses the capacity to Reproduction, reproduce and ...

Personal life

Mohindra is in a relationship with actor Sacha Dhawan.

Filmography

Film

Television

Theatre

Audio and radio dramas

Audiobook narration

Video games

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Mohindra, Anjli Living people 21st-century English actresses 21st-century English women writers 21st-century English writers Actresses from Nottinghamshire Audiobook narrators British Hindus English people of Indian descent English people of Punjabi descent English Hindus English television actresses English voice actresses People educated at West Bridgford School Actors from the London Borough of Barnet People from West Bridgford Actresses from London People from Edgware Year of birth missing (living people)