Arnab Chanda is an English born writer and director.
Career
He was born in England in
Pontefract
Pontefract is a historic market town in the City of Wakefield, a metropolitan district in West Yorkshire, England. It lies to the east of Wakefield and south of Castleford. Historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, it is one of the ...
, but left at age 6 and grew up in Saudi Arabia and the US. After graduating from the
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC, UNC–Chapel Hill, or simply Carolina) is a public university, public research university in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States. Chartered in 1789, the university first began enrolli ...
, he started doing stand-up comedy in New York City. He moved to London and won the
Jongleurs New Act Competition, the Amused Moose Comedy Awards, and was nominated for Best Newcomer in the 2007 British
Chortle Awards
The Chortle Awards were set up in 2002 by the comedy website Chortle to honour the best of established stand-up comics currently working in the UK. A panel of reviewers draw up a shortlist, which is presented for public vote at the Chortle webs ...
.
He stopped performing stand-up in 2010.
Performances
He has performed stand up on the Comedy Central UK
Comedy Central is a British pay television channel that carries comedy programming, both original and broadcast syndication, syndicated. This channel is specific to audiences within the United Kingdom and Ireland. The channel is aligned with ...
shows ''The World Stands Up'' in 2007, ''Edinburgh & Beyond'' in 2007, and the ''Comedy Store
The Comedy Store is an American comedy club opened in April 1972. It is located in West Hollywood, California, at 8433 Sunset Boulevard on the Sunset Strip. An associated club is located in La Jolla, San Diego, California.
History
The Com ...
'' in 2008, Russell Howard's Good News
''Russell Howard's Good News'' is a British comedy and topical news television show which was broadcast on BBC Three between 2009 and 2014, and on BBC Two between 2014 and 2015. Hosted by comedian Russell Howard, it offered his commentary on th ...
(BBC Three
BBC Three is a British free-to-air Public service broadcasting in the United Kingdom, public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It was first launched on 9 February 2003 with programmes for a 16 to 34-year-old target aud ...
, Series 2, 2010), The Stephen K Amos
Stephen Kehinde Amos (born 3 December 1967) is a British comedian and television personality. A regular on the international comedy circuit, he is known for including his audience members during his shows. He began his career as a compere at ...
Show (BBC Two
BBC Two is a British free-to-air Public service broadcasting in the United Kingdom, public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's second flagship channel, and it covers a wide range of subject matte ...
, Series 1, 2010), and Chris Moyles' Comedy Empire (BBC Three
BBC Three is a British free-to-air Public service broadcasting in the United Kingdom, public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It was first launched on 9 February 2003 with programmes for a 16 to 34-year-old target aud ...
, 2012) . He has also appeared on The Jon Richardson Show (BBC 6 Music
BBC Radio 6 Music is a British digital radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It primarily plays a wide range of alternative music, from established and emerging artists and bands. In 2002 it was the first national music radio station t ...
), The Comedy Cafe with Janice Forsyth (BBC Scotland), ''Out to Lunch'' (BBC Radio 2
BBC Radio 2 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It is the List of most-listened-to radio programs, most popular station in the United Kingdom with over 14 million weekly listeners. Since launching in 1967, the sta ...
), ''28 Acts in 28 Minutes'' (BBC Radio 4
BBC Radio 4 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. The station replaced the BBC Home Service on 30 September 1967 and broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes from the BBC's headquarters at Broadcasti ...
), and "Many Questions" (The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...
Unlimited Podcast).
His live performances include the Edinburgh Festival
__NOTOC__
This is a list of Arts festival, arts and cultural festivals regularly taking place in Edinburgh, Scotland.
The city has become known for its festivals since the establishment in 1947 of the Edinburgh International Festival and the ...
in 2006 in "The Comedy Bucket" (with Matthew Crosby, Joe Wilkinson, Al Stick, and Dave Nichols), "Tickets Still Available" with Greg McHugh (Edinburgh Festival, 2007), Rich Fulcher
Richard Fulcher (born November 18, 1963) is an American comedian, actor and author. He played Bob Fossil and other characters in the British comedy series ''The Mighty Boosh'', and Edward Sheath in the American series ''Jon Benjamin Has a Van''. ...
's "Tiny Acts of Rebellion" (Edinburgh Festival, 2011), the Mighty Boosh
The Mighty Boosh is a British comedy troupe featuring comedians Julian Barratt and Noel Fielding. Developed from three stage shows, The Mighty Boosh (1998 stage show), ''The Mighty Boosh'', Arctic Boosh, ''Arctic Boosh'' (1999) and Autoboosh, ...
Festival in 2008, the Latitude Festival
Latitude Festival is an annual music and arts festival set within the grounds of Henham Park, near Southwold, Suffolk, England.
The first edition of the festival took place in 2006 and has continued annually (apart from 2020 when it was cancel ...
in 2007 and 2008, the Leeds Festival
The Reading and Leeds Festivals are a pair of annual music festivals that take place in Reading, Berkshire, Reading and Leeds in England. The events take place simultaneously on the Friday, Saturday and Sunday of the August bank holiday weekend ...
in 2008, The Big Chill Festival in 2008. He was the tour support act for Simon Amstell
Simon Marc Amstell (born 29 November 1979) is an English comedian, writer and director. He wrote and directed the films '' Carnage'' (2017) and ''Benjamin'' (2018). His work on television has included presenting '' Popworld'' and '' Never Mind t ...
from 2007 to 2009, as well as Stephen Merchant
Stephen James Merchant (born 24 November 1974) is an English comedian, writer, director, and actor. He was the co-writer and co-director of the British TV comedy series ''The Office (British TV series), The Office'' (2001–2003), and co-writer ...
in 2008.
Acting
His credits include Raj Puri in the ITV2
ITV2 is a Television in the United Kingdom, British free-to-air television channel owned by ITV Digital Channels, a division of ITV plc. It was launched on 7 December 1998. For a number of years, it had the largest audience share after the fiv ...
series ''Trinity'', Edward in the 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 ...
nominated independent film '' Black Pond'' (2011), Ned in Julia Davis
Julia Davis (born August 1966) is an English actress, comedian, director and writer. She is known for writing and starring in the comedies Human Remains (TV series), ''Human Remains'' (2000) and ''Nighty Night'' (2004–2005). She later worke ...
's ''Hunderby
''Hunderby'' is a British black comedy television series produced by Sky (United Kingdom), Sky and written by Julia Davis. It was first broadcast on Sky Atlantic in 2012. The series won two awards at the British Comedy Awards in 2012; it also ...
'' (Sky Atlantic, 2012), Danny Bullet in series 2 of Noel Fielding
Noel Fielding (; born 21 May 1973) is an English comedian, artist, and actor. He was part of The Mighty Boosh comedy troupe alongside Julian Barratt in the 2000s, and has been a co-presenter of ''The Great British Bake Off'' since 2017. He is kn ...
's ''Luxury Comedy'' (2014), Kris in Series 1 of Dan Clark's ''How Not to Live Your Life
''How Not to Live Your Life'' (styled in the opening credits as "how NOT to live your life") is a British sitcom, written by and starring Dan Clark that aired between 27 September 2007 and 22 December 2011 on BBC Three, about a pessimistic twenty ...
'' on BBC Three
BBC Three is a British free-to-air Public service broadcasting in the United Kingdom, public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It was first launched on 9 February 2003 with programmes for a 16 to 34-year-old target aud ...
, and was a writer/performer in ''Comedy Cuts
''Comedy Cuts'' is a comedy programme on the British TV channel ITV2 that aims to provide an opportunity for new comedy performers to present their talents. Featuring 40 performers demonstrating a mix of stand up and sketches, the series is shot e ...
'' (ITV2
ITV2 is a Television in the United Kingdom, British free-to-air television channel owned by ITV Digital Channels, a division of ITV plc. It was launched on 7 December 1998. For a number of years, it had the largest audience share after the fiv ...
, Season 3), ''Splitting Cells'' (BBC Three
BBC Three is a British free-to-air Public service broadcasting in the United Kingdom, public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It was first launched on 9 February 2003 with programmes for a 16 to 34-year-old target aud ...
), and co-wrote and acted in the short film ''Old Sea Dog'' (London Short Film Festival, 2012). In 2017, he played the part of "Master Don" in the music video " Steambreather" in the album '' Emperor of Sand'' by the band Mastodon
A mastodon, from Ancient Greek μαστός (''mastós''), meaning "breast", and ὀδούς (''odoús'') "tooth", is a member of the genus ''Mammut'' (German for 'mammoth'), which was endemic to North America and lived from the late Miocene to ...
, produced by production company Blink. In 2018, he has been the voice of Chuck for the ''YouTube
YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...
'' show, Angry Birds on the Run.
Writing
He was a staff writer for the MTV Europe Music Awards
The MTV Europe Music Awards (originally named MTV European Music Awards, commonly abbreviated as MTV EMA) are awards presented by Paramount International Networks to honour artists and music in pop culture. It was originally conceived as an al ...
(MTV
MTV (an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable television television channel, channel and the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group sub-division of the Paramount Media Networks division of Paramount Global. Launched on ...
Int'l, 2010), the 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 ...
nominated BBC2
BBC Two is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's second flagship channel, and it covers a wide range of subject matter, incorporating genres such as comedy, drama and ...
show ''Never Mind the Buzzcocks
''Never Mind the Buzzcocks'' is a British comedy panel game show with a pop music theme. It has aired on Sky Max since September 2021, having originally aired between November 1996 and January 2015 on BBC Two. The original series was first host ...
'' (Series 22, 2008), the MTV
MTV (an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable television television channel, channel and the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group sub-division of the Paramount Media Networks division of Paramount Global. Launched on ...
show "Celebrity Bites" (Co-Head Writer, Series 1, 2010), and has written for Dan Clark
Daniel Gregory Clark (born 3 July 1976) is an English actor, comedian, writer, director, and singer. He is best known for playing Don Danbury on the BBC Three sitcom '' How Not to Live Your Life'', which he also wrote, co-produced, and sometimes ...
's ''How Not to Live Your Life
''How Not to Live Your Life'' (styled in the opening credits as "how NOT to live your life") is a British sitcom, written by and starring Dan Clark that aired between 27 September 2007 and 22 December 2011 on BBC Three, about a pessimistic twenty ...
'' (BBC Three
BBC Three is a British free-to-air Public service broadcasting in the United Kingdom, public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It was first launched on 9 February 2003 with programmes for a 16 to 34-year-old target aud ...
, Series 2 (2009) and 3 (2010)), "Comedy Cuts
''Comedy Cuts'' is a comedy programme on the British TV channel ITV2 that aims to provide an opportunity for new comedy performers to present their talents. Featuring 40 performers demonstrating a mix of stand up and sketches, the series is shot e ...
" (ITV2, Series 3), and "Splitting Cells" (BBC Three
BBC Three is a British free-to-air Public service broadcasting in the United Kingdom, public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It was first launched on 9 February 2003 with programmes for a 16 to 34-year-old target aud ...
). He was nominated for a 2018 Writers Guild Award for "Best Online Comedy", for his web series "Three Cool Days". He has also been a guest columnist for The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...
.
Producing
He was a Producer at BBC Radio Comedy between 2013 and 2016, making Radio 4 series for John Kearns, Liam Williams, Alex Edelman, as well as series 10 and 11 of NewsJack, and series 10 of Chain Reaction.
References
* Blink (production company)
* Steambreather
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chanda, Arnab
English male comedians
English male television actors
English people of Indian descent
Living people
1981 births
Male actors from London
Actors from Pontefract
21st-century British male actors
Male actors from West Yorkshire
Comedians from West Yorkshire
Comedians from London