Humza Mohammed Arshad (; born 3 June 1985) is an English actor, comedian and writer of

Pakistani Pakistanis (, ) are the citizens and nationals of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. Pakistan is the fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the second-largest Muslim population as of 2023. As much as ...

descent. He produces the web series '' Diary of a Bad Man'' (2010–2013) and '' Badman'' (2015–present). His homemade YouTube videos have been viewed more than 100 million times, which makes him one of the most popular online comedians in the UK.

Early life

Arshad was born on 3 June 1985 to a Punjabi Muslim family in the

Streatham Streatham ( ) is a district in south London, England. Centred south of Charing Cross, it lies mostly within the London Borough of Lambeth, with some parts extending into the neighbouring London Borough of Wandsworth. Streatham was in Surrey ...

district of

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 ...

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

. His parents were born in

Pakistan Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...

. His father, Mohammad Arshad, is from

Jhelum Jhelum (; , ) is a city, located along the western bank of the Jhelum River, in Punjab, Pakistan. It is the 21st largest city in Punjab and 31st largest in Pakistan, by population. Located in northern Punjab, it serves as the capital of the ...

Punjab Punjab (; ; also romanised as Panjāb or Panj-Āb) is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia. It is located in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising areas of modern-day eastern Pakistan and no ...

, Pakistan, and his mother, Noreen Arshad, is from

Lahore Lahore ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, Pakistani province of Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, second-largest city in Pakistan, after Karachi, and ...

, Punjab, Pakistan. He has two siblings; a younger sister, Hanna, and a younger brother, Hasan. Arshad studied

GNVQ A General National Vocational Qualification, or GNVQ, was a certificate of vocational education in the United Kingdom. The last GNVQs were awarded in 2007. The qualifications related to occupational areas in general, rather than any specific ...

Performing Arts The performing arts are arts such as music, dance, and drama which are performed for an audience. They are different from the visual arts, which involve the use of paint, canvas or various materials to create physical or static art objects. P ...

at Croydon College and

BTEC National Diploma The BTEC (Business and Technology Education Council) Level 3 diploma is a Further Education qualification and vocational qualification taken in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The qualification is organised and awarded by Pearson within th ...

in Performing Arts at Kingston College. He then graduated from Richmond Drama School with a degree in Drama. He had a part-time job as an Asian wedding hall waiter.

Career

In September 2010, Arshad created comedy web series '' Diary of a Bad Man'', revolving around video diaries of a young man with the "mentality of a seven-year-old". In 2011, the fifth episode of ''Diary of a Bad Man'' was the seventh most viewed video on YouTube in the UK. In December 2010, Arshad was interviewed by Waqas Saeed on

BBC Asian Network BBC Asian Network is a British digital radio station owned and operated by the BBC. The station's target audience is people "with an interest in British Asian lifestyles", especially those between the ages of 18 and 34. The station has produc ...

. In March and December 2011, he featured on BBC Asian Network's ''Noreen Khan Drive Time Show''. In July 2011, Arshad performed on '' Meera Syal's Comedy Night'' on BBC Asian Network. In July 2011, he was interviewed by Bobby Friction on BBC Asian Network's ''Bobby Friction's late night show''. In July and August 2011, he featured and reported for BBC London News. In November 2011, he featured on '' Nihal's phone-in show'' on BBC Asian Network. In July 2011, Arshad toured four UK cities in the Peace Youth and Community Trust's (PYCT) first Muslim Comedy Tour, alongside Jeff Mirza, Prince Abdi and Nabil Abdul Rashid. From November to December 2011, he toured eight UK cities, performing at nine venues, with his comedy show called ''The Badman Comedy Tour 2011'', he was accompanied by his entourage; Asif Hussain, Jaspal Kerrah, Junaid Malik, Yogesh Kalia, and Fayaaz Kassam. The tour was sponsored by Azme Alishan, a Pakistan-based social movement. In May 2013, Arshad performed stand-up at the Shaw Theatre in London. On 9 and 10 July 2013, he was involved in a live shows of ''Smokey's Barbers'' at the Pavilion Theatre, Festival Square for the

Manchester International Festival The Manchester International Festival is a biennial international arts festival, with a specific focus on original new work, held in the English city of Manchester and run by Factory International. The festival is a biennial event, first takin ...

. In the same month, he was interviewed by Tommy Sandhu on BBC Asian Network. From 11 to 25 August 2013, he performed 15 stand-up shows at the

Edinburgh Festival Fringe The Edinburgh Festival Fringe (also referred to as the Edinburgh Fringe, the Fringe or the Edinburgh Fringe Festival) is the world's largest performance arts festival, which in 2024 spanned 25 days, sold more than 2.6 million tickets and featur ...

. In March 2015, Arshad appeared at the Muslim Youth Festival, a festival on how to divert young Britons away from extremism and looking at what it means to be a young British Muslim in the UK today.

Published works

In 2018

Penguin Random House Penguin Random House Limited is a British-American multinational corporation, multinational conglomerate (company), conglomerate publishing company formed on July 1, 2013, with the merger of Penguin Books and Random House. Penguin Books was or ...

bought the children's novel series ''Little Badman'', created by Arshad and comedy writer Henry White. The first in the series is titled ''Little Badman and the Invasion of the Killer Aunties'' and was published on World Book Day in March 2019. The second book, ''Little Badman and the Time-travelling Teacher of Doom,'' was published on 20 August 2020. The third book, ''Little Badman and the Radioactive Samosa,'' was published for World Book Day in March 2021. The fourth book, ''Little Badman and the Rise of the Punjabi Zombies'' was published on 7 July 2022. The books are illustrated by Aleksei Bitskoff. ''Little Badman'' follows the story of 11 year old rapper Humza Khan who becomes suspicious when his school teachers begin to disappear and are replaced by evil aunties.

Honours, awards and recognition

On 28 March 2011, Arshad was nominated in the categories for comedy and entertainment at the third annual Shorty Awards for social media at The Times Center, New York City. In 2012, he was nominated for in the category of YouTube star at the fourth annual Shorty Awards. Arshad was appointed

Member of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

(MBE) in the

2021 New Year Honours The 2021 New Year Honours are appointments by some of the 16 Commonwealth realms to various orders and honours to recognise and reward good works by citizens of those countries. The New Year Honours are awarded as part of the New Year celebratio ...

for services to education.

Personal life

In June and July 2011, arranged by the Metropolitan Police, Arshad visited schools with Jaspal Kerrah and Junaid Malik to give presentations to students, discussing topics and issues encountered by teenagers living in London. In October 2014, Arshad was recruited by East Midlands Police to help prevent the radicalisation of British Muslims by holding workshops at schools in the area. He made a 15-minute film "Think for Yourself" to show teenagers the dangers of exposure to extremist messages. In 2015, Arshad and the Metropolitan Police Service toured around 50 schools, doing shows for students holding anti-extremism discussions and workshops for 11 to 18-year-old students in order to help prevent vulnerable students becoming radicalised at schools and colleges across London. Arshad is working in partnership with

Scotland Yard Scotland Yard (officially New Scotland Yard) is the headquarters of the Metropolitan Police, the territorial police force responsible for policing Greater London's London boroughs, 32 boroughs. Its name derives from the location of the original ...

to aid in their campaign to counter violent Islamist extremism within high school students in London.

Videography

References

External links

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