Ritu Arya is a British actress. She first became known for her role as Megan Sharma in the

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 ...

Doctors Doctor, Doctors, The Doctor or The Doctors may refer to: Titles and occupations * Physician, a medical practitioner * Doctor (title), an academic title for the holder of a doctoral-level degree ** Doctorate ** List of doctoral degrees awarded b ...

'' (2017), for which she was nominated for a

British Soap Award The British Soap Awards (BSAs) are an annual awards ceremony in the United Kingdom which honours the best moments in British soap operas. The ceremony is televised on ITV (TV network), ITV. The trophies given to the winners are made from metal a ...

. She gained further recognition for her roles as Flash in the sci-fi series ''

Humans Humans (''Homo sapiens'') or modern humans are the most common and widespread species of primate, and the last surviving species of the genus ''Homo''. They are Hominidae, great apes characterized by their Prehistory of nakedness and clothing ...

'' (2016–2018) and Lila Pitts 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 ...

series ''

The Umbrella Academy ''The Umbrella Academy'' is an Absurdist fiction, absurdist Superhero fiction, superhero comic book series created by writer Gerard Way and artist Gabriel Bá. It follows a dysfunctional family of adopted superhero siblings with bizarre powers a ...

'' (2020–2024). She also starred in the film '' Polite Society'' (2023) as Lena Khan.

Early life and education

Ritu Arya's mother and father both work in real estate. She is of Indian descent and has two brothers, Romi and Rahul, the latter of whom is also an actor. Arya began acting as a teenager. Arya obtained a BSc in

astrophysics Astrophysics is a science that employs the methods and principles of physics and chemistry in the study of astronomical objects and phenomena. As one of the founders of the discipline, James Keeler, said, astrophysics "seeks to ascertain the ...

from the

University of Southampton The University of Southampton (abbreviated as ''Soton'' in post-nominal letters) is a public university, public research university in Southampton, England. Southampton is a founding member of the Russell Group of research-intensive universit ...

, where she performed as part of the Southampton University Theatre Group and Comedy Society, including several shows at the

Edinburgh Fringe Festival 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 ...

. She subsequently trained at the Oxford School of Drama.

Career

Acting

Arya first had acting roles in a series of roles in

short film A short film is a film with a low running time. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) defines a short film as "an original motion picture that has a running time of not more than 40 minutes including all credits". Other film o ...

s, and had a guest appearance in the series ''Sherlock'' in 2014. She played the recurring role of Dr. Megan Sharma in the British

''Doctors'', for which she was nominated for the

British Soap Award for Best Newcomer The British Soap Award for Best Newcomer is an award presented annually by the British Soap Awards. The award is voted for by a panel. ''EastEnders'' is the most awarded soap in the category, with nine wins. ''Emmerdale'' is the only current so ...

in 2017. She also had a recurring role as the android Flash in the series ''

'' from 2016 to 2018. In 2019, Arya appeared as Jenna in the film ''Last Christmas'', which was a commercial success. The following year, she had a recurring role as Lava in the

series ''Feel Good'' and guest starred in the series ''

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 ...

''. In 2020, Arya starred as Lila Pitts in the second season of the

original series ''

'', which earned her praise. She reprised the character in the series' third season, which was released in 2022. ''Bustle'' magazine described her performance in the series as "scene-stealing" and ''

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'' called Arya the "wild-card" of the show. The series ended in 2024. In 2021, Arya co-starred in the Netflix film '' Red Notice'', and in 2023 appeared in

Greta Gerwig Greta Celeste Gerwig ( ; born August 4, 1983) is an American actress, screenwriter, and film director. Initially known for working on various mumblecore films, she has since expanded from acting in and co-writing independent films to directing ...

's ''Barbie''. In 2024 she plays a lead role in the action series '' Paris Has Fallen'' as

MI6 The Secret Intelligence Service (SIS), commonly known as MI6 ( Military Intelligence, Section 6), is the foreign intelligence service of the United Kingdom, tasked mainly with the covert overseas collection and analysis of human intelligenc ...

operative Zara Taylor, opposite French actor Tewfik Jallab.

Music

Arya was a drummer and part of the band KIN, who released their debut single "Sharing Light" in April 2020. Their follow-up single "L.O.V.E." premiered on 6 August 2020. On 16 October 2022, KIN released a statement saying that Arya had left the band and her last live show with them was on 14 October 2022 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 ...

Filmography

Film

Television

Theatre

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Arya, Ritu Living people 21st-century English drummers 21st-century English actresses Actresses from Guildford Alumni of the Oxford School of Drama Alumni of the University of Southampton English film actresses English people of Indian descent English television actresses English women drummers Actresses of Indian descent English soap opera actresses Musicians of Indian descent Year of birth missing (living people)