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Shobna Gulati (born 7 August 1966)www.shobnagulati.co.uk
Shobna Gulati official website
is an English actor and presenter. Gulati is known for playing Anita in '' dinnerladies'' and Sunita Alahan 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 ...
''
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 ...
'' from 2001 to 2013. They also played Mari Hoff in the 2006 UK Tour of '' The Rise and Fall of Little Voice''. From 2013 to 2014, Gulati appeared as a panellist on the lunchtime talk show '' Loose Women''. They took over the role of Ray in the West End production of '' Everybody's Talking About Jamie'' in 2019 and also reprised the role for the
film adaptation A film adaptation transfers the details or story of an existing source text, such as a novel, into a feature film. This transfer can involve adapting most details of the source text closely, including characters or plot points, or the original sou ...
. Most recently, they played the role of Nima in '' Hullraisers'' and reprised the role of Ray in ''Everybody's Talking About Jamie'' for its 2023–2024 UK and Ireland Tour. Gulati 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 2024 Birthday Honours for services to the cultural industries.


Early life

Gulati was born in
Oldham Oldham is a town in Greater Manchester, England. It lies amongst the Pennines on elevated ground between the rivers River Irk, Irk and River Medlock, Medlock, southeast of Rochdale, and northeast of Manchester. It is the administrative cent ...
to Punjabi Hindu parents. Gulati was raised a Hindu, and married in a Hindu ceremony. Gulati grew up in
Openshaw Openshaw is a suburb of Manchester, Greater Manchester, England, about three miles east of the Manchester city centre. Historic counties of England, Historically part of Lancashire, Openshaw was incorporated into the city of Manchester in 1890. ...
, Manchester, and became friends with actress Sarah Lancashire. Gulati has a degree in
Arabic Arabic (, , or , ) is a Central Semitic languages, Central Semitic language of the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family spoken primarily in the Arab world. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) assigns lang ...
and
Middle East The Middle East (term originally coined in English language) is a geopolitical region encompassing the Arabian Peninsula, the Levant, Turkey, Egypt, Iran, and Iraq. The term came into widespread usage by the United Kingdom and western Eur ...
ern politics from the
University of Manchester The University of Manchester is a public university, public research university in Manchester, England. The main campus is south of Manchester city centre, Manchester City Centre on Wilmslow Road, Oxford Road. The University of Manchester is c ...
.


Career

One of Gulati's earliest appearances was as a dancer in the video for
Boy George George Alan O'Dowd (born 14 June 1961), known professionally as Boy George, is an English singer-songwriter and DJ who rose to fame as the lead singer of the pop band Culture Club. He began his solo career in 1987. Boy George grew up in Eltham a ...
's 1991 single " Bow Down Mister". In the late 1990s, they appeared in both series of Victoria Wood's BBC sitcom ''dinnerladies''. They appeared as Ameena Badawi from October to December 2000 in ''
EastEnders ''EastEnders'' is a British television soap opera created by Julia Smith (producer), Julia Smith and Tony Holland which has been broadcast on BBC One since February 1985. Set in the fictional borough of Walford in the East End of London, the ...
''. They appeared in ''Coronation Street'' as Sunita and in the same role in " East Street", a crossover between both soaps, as part of the 2010 Children In Need telethon. In 2001, they appeared in the short film ''Shadowscan'', directed by Tinge Krishnan, which won 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 ...
Award and, in 2004, was nominated for a ''
Manchester Evening News The ''Manchester Evening News'' (''MEN'') is a regional daily newspaper covering Greater Manchester in North West England, founded in 1868. It is published Monday–Saturday; a Sunday edition, the ''MEN on Sunday'', was launched in February 20 ...
'' theatre award for their work in the play ''Dancing Within Walls'', which was staged at the Contact Theatre in
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 ...
. Gulati has also appeared on the TV quiz shows '' Call My Bluff'', '' Have I Got News for You'', ''
The Weakest Link ''Weakest Link'' (also known as ''The Weakest Link'') is a television game show which The Weakest Link (British game show), first appeared in the United Kingdom on BBC Two on 14 August 2000 and originally ended on 31 March 2012 when its host ...
'', '' Russian Roulette'' and as
Diana Ross Diana Ross (born Diane Ernestine Earle Ross March 26, 1944) is an American singer and actress. Known as the "Queen of Motown Records", she was the lead singer of the vocal group the Supremes, who became Motown#Major divisions, Motown's most suc ...
in
Celebrity Celebrity is a condition of fame and broad public recognition of a person or group due to the attention given to them by mass media. The word is also used to refer to famous individuals. A person may attain celebrity status by having great w ...
'' Stars in Their Eyes''. In early 2006, Gulati took part in the
Reality TV Reality television is a genre of television programming that documents purportedly unscripted real-life situations, often starring ordinary people rather than professional actors. Reality television emerged as a distinct genre in the early 199 ...
series '' Soapstar Superstar''. After Gulati left ''Coronation Street'' for the first time in 2006, they played Nisha Clayton, a regular role in the final series of '' Where the Heart Is'', and made appearances in '' New Street Law'' and the one-off comedy drama ''Magnolia'', which was written by Dave Spikey for BBC's ''Comedy Playhouse'' series. In October 2006, Gulati appeared at the
Royal Albert Hall The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall on the northern edge of South Kensington, London, England. It has a seating capacity of 5,272. Since the hall's opening by Queen Victoria in 1871, the world's leading artists from many performance genres ...
as part of a short skit featured in '' The Secret Policeman's Ball''. In the sketch, Gulati and their co-star Nitin Ganatra play a holidaying couple who are under the mistaken belief Guantanamo Bay is a holiday resort. The sketch also starred the American actors
Chevy Chase Cornelius Crane "Chevy" Chase (; born October 8, 1943) is an American comedian, actor, and writer. He became the breakout cast member in the first season of ''Saturday Night Live'' (1975–1976), where his recurring ''Weekend Update'' segment b ...
and Seth Green. Gulati was one of the storytellers in a CBBC revival of ''
Jackanory ''Jackanory'' was a BBC children's television series which was originally broadcast between 1965 and 1996. It was designed to stimulate an interest in Reading (activity), reading. The programme was first transmitted on 13 December 1965, and the ...
'' and in the UK tour of the hit play ''Girls Night'' by Louise Roche. They also appeared on the Channel 4 special ''Empire's Children'', tracing her family's history during the partition of
India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...
. In summer 2007, they appeared in ''Pretend You Have Big Buildings'' at the Royal Exchange, Manchester. In 2008, Gulati made their debut as a filmmaker, producing the short film ''Akshay'' for the motiroti's 60x60 Secs. This was shortlisted for the Satyajit Ray short film awards. During this same period, they returned to their ''Coronation Street'' role as Sunita Alahan, where they stayed for three years. On 11 June 2009, Gulati appeared in the BBC1 programme '' Celebrity MasterChef''. They performed in the first stage tour of ''dinnerladies'' in early 2009 and they have appeared as a guest story teller for ''Bedtime Stories'' on CBBC. Gulati made their '' Loose Women'' debut on 18 November 2010 to celebrate 50 years of ''Coronation Street'', appearing with regulars Kate Thornton, Sherrie Hewson and Carol McGiffin. Gulati returned to the show on 11 April 2012 appearing alongside regulars Andrea McLean, Jane McDonald and Janet Street-Porter during soap week. Gulati returned to the show as a regular from 13 March 2013, taking over from Sally Lindsay who took time off to film '' Mount Pleasant'', from September 2013, Gulati became an occasional panellist on the show, before leaving on 30 May 2014. In June 2011, Gulati was a guest on '' Countdown''. Announcing their departure from ''Coronation Street'', they expressed their desire to write and perform more comedy than their work in a soap opera had permitted them time to do. In 2016, they appeared in the ITV/
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series ''
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 ...
''. Gulati made a guest appearance in ''Casualty'' on 29 October 2016. In 2017, they appeared as Saba in the British romantic comedy film '' Finding Fatimah''. In 2018, Gulati appeared 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 ...
'' episodes " Arachnids in the UK" and " Demons of the Punjab" as Najia Khan, mother of The Doctor's companion Yaz Khan. Gulati played Ray in the West End production of '' Everybody's Talking About Jamie'' at the Apollo Theatre in 2018. Now adapted as a screenplay, Gulati played the part of Ray alongside Sarah Lancashire. '' Everybody's Talking About Jamie'' was released on 17 September 2021. In 2022,shey led the company of '' The Rise and Fall of Little Voice'' as Mari Hoff, and starred in the show alongside their son Akshay. Gulati reprised the role of Ray in the 2023-2024 UK and Ireland Tour of ''Everybody's Talking About Jamie''. Gulati wrote a memoir titled ''Remember Me?'' on losing a parent to
dementia Dementia is a syndrome associated with many neurodegenerative diseases, characterized by a general decline in cognitive abilities that affects a person's ability to perform activities of daily living, everyday activities. This typically invo ...
based on her experiences caring for their mother, who died in 2019. During publicity interviews for the book, Gulati revealed that they had contracted
Coronavirus Coronaviruses are a group of related RNA viruses that cause diseases in mammals and birds. In humans and birds, they cause respiratory tract infections that can range from mild to lethal. Mild illnesses in humans include some cases of the comm ...
earlier in 2020. In May 2021, Gulati starred as Vicky in the three-part comedy drama murder mystery series, ''Murder, They Hope''. In December 2022, Gulati appeared as Posy in the Christmas special of BBC dark comedy ''
Inside No. 9 ''Inside No. 9'' is a British black comedy Anthology series, anthology television programme written and created by Steve Pemberton and Reece Shearsmith. It aired on BBC Two from 5 February 2014 to 12 June 2024, running for 9 series and 55 episo ...
'', " The Bones of St Nicholas".


Personal life

Gulati is the child of K. A. Gulati who arrived in
Oldham Oldham is a town in Greater Manchester, England. It lies amongst the Pennines on elevated ground between the rivers River Irk, Irk and River Medlock, Medlock, southeast of Rochdale, and northeast of Manchester. It is the administrative cent ...
from
Bombay Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial centre, financial capital and the list of cities i ...
,
India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...
, in 1960. They have a younger brother, Rajesh, and two older sisters, Sushma and Hema. Gulati married the architect Anshu Srivastava in a Hindu ceremony on 10 November 1990; the couple divorced in May 1994. Gulati lived separately from their husband and became pregnant. From 1999 to 2003, they were in a relationship with the ex-''
Emmerdale ''Emmerdale'' (known as ''Emmerdale Farm'' until 1989) is a British television soap opera that is broadcast on ITV (TV network), ITV. The show is set in Emmerdale (known as Beckindale until 1994), a List of fictional towns and villages, fict ...
'' actor Gary Turner. Gulati has a working knowledge of six languages and is a vocal supporter of Asian women's rights and various anti-racism campaigns. Gulati works on female body image issues, despite not identifying as a woman themselves. Shobna is a supporter and a season ticket holder of
Manchester United Manchester United Football Club, commonly referred to as Man United (often stylised as Man Utd) or simply United, is a professional association football, football club based in Old Trafford (area), Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, Engl ...
. In 2015, Gulati was appointed as a deputy lieutenant of
Greater Manchester Greater Manchester is a ceremonial county in North West England. It borders Lancashire to the north, Derbyshire and West Yorkshire to the east, Cheshire to the south, and Merseyside to the west. Its largest settlement is the city of Manchester. ...
. This gives them the right to use the Post Nominal Letters "DL" for life.
- http://manchesterlieutenancy.org/Gulati_Shobna}
In March 2025, during an interview on Kaye Adams' ''How to Be 60'' podcast, Gulati came out as
non-binary Non-binary or genderqueer Gender identity, gender identities are those that are outside the male/female gender binary. Non-binary identities often fall under the transgender umbrella since non-binary people typically identify with a gende ...
, and revealed they were in a relationship, as well as confirming their use of they/them pronouns.


Shafilea Ahmed

Gulati was asked to help a murder hunt in December 2004 following the murder of Shafilea Ahmed. At a press conference appealing for more information, Gulati read out some of the poems found in her bedroom during their investigations which "were a testimony to her sadness at being caught in a culture clash with other members of her family". After the reading, Gulati said that they believed they showed that Shafilea was trapped between two cultures. "It can be very difficult if you are born here but your parents were not and there can be a lot of cultural issues," they said. "It is a situation facing many young Asian women who are unable to express themselves properly within her families. I feel these words are the sort of style she would use when talking with her friends. If she is out there she should let people know she is safe because there are organizations and individuals who can help her." Gulati said that they sympathised with the teenager's difficulty in balancing her culture with her upbringing. "She has obviously been unable to express herself in terms of her family and she probably talks like this to her friends, or has written these songs in private."


Filmography


Film


Television


Books

* ''Remember Them?: Discovering My Mother as She Lost Her Memory,'' Octopus Publishing Group (Hachette UK)
Hardcover

Paperback


Honours


Commonwealth honours

; Commonwealth honours


Scholastic

; University degrees ;Honorary degrees


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Gulati, Shobna Living people 1966 births Alumni of the University of Manchester British Hindus Deputy lieutenants of Greater Manchester English people of Indian descent English soap opera actors English television actors British non-binary actors People associated with the University of Huddersfield 20th-century British actors 21st-century British actors 21st-century English LGBTQ people Members of the Order of the British Empire