Shabana Akhtar Bakhsh (born 9 November 1981 in Glasgow) is a Scottish actress of Pakistani descent who has appeared in soap operas such as River City and Doctors. Her best known role is in the BBC One school-based drama series Waterloo Road starring as English teacher Jasmine Koreshi.
Biography
Shabana Akhtar Bakhsh made her acting debut in River City as Zara Malik, who moved to Aberdeen. Her parents are of Pakistani origin. She went on to appear in Ken Loach's Ae Fond Kiss. She then became a regular in Doctors as Tasha Verma. She appeared in the BBC One school-based drama series, Waterloo Road, as newly qualified English teacher Jasmine Koreshi. She currently lives in Glasgow. In 2009 travelled around Scottish schools with TAG theatre company in the production "Yellow Moon", a play by David Greig, where she plays the character Silent Leila.
She has been an outspoken critic of the BBC, saying that they are afraid to write for ethnic minorities. She has also campaigned for women's rights in the Asian community.
Filmography
Film
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
2004 | Ae Fond Kiss... | Tahara Khan | |
2011 | Perfect Sense | Nurse | |
2014 | Honeycomb Lodge | Azra | |
2018 | Super November | Mona |
Television
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
2002–2003 | River City | Zara Malik | 3 episodes |
2004 | The Afternoon Play | Yasmeela Khan | 1 episode, "Glasgow Dreams" |
2004–2005 | Doctors | Tasha Verma | Series regular |
2005 | Taggart | Layla | 1 episode, "Cause to Kill" |
2007-2009 | Waterloo Road | Jasmine Koreshi | Series regular |
2017 | The Replacement | Interview Panel | 1 episode |
References
- ^ Taylor, Joanna (3 January 2004). "BBC attacked over Asian plotlines; River City soap star criticises Beeb scriptwriters". The Stage. p. 3.
- Miller, Phil (21 November 2003). "BBC 'scared of Asian actors';Attack on attitudes to River City cast". The Herald.
- Schofield, Kevin (16 November 2007). "Celebrities present the awards". The Herald.
- "Class warfare leaves TV teacher Shabana Bakhsh in a fury". Daily Record. (Reach plc). 22 February 2009. Archived from the original on 31 July 2022. Retrieved 31 July 2022.
External links
- Shabana Akhtar Bakhsh at IMDb
- Article about Shabana on the Daily Record website
- Small extract on Ae Fond Kiss article
- Waterloo Road article about her and her character
- Article on Scotsman's website about Shabana
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- 1981 births
- Living people
- Scottish television actresses
- Scottish soap opera actresses
- Scottish film actresses
- Scottish people of Pakistani descent
- People educated at Bellahouston Academy
- British actors of Pakistani descent
- 21st-century Scottish actresses
- Actresses from Glasgow
- British television actor, 1980s birth stubs
- Scottish actor stubs