Firdous Bamji
Encyclopedia
Firdous Bamji is an Indian-American actor.
, a small American boarding school in the mountains of South India
. He also grew up in Bahrain
and South Carolina
. Bamji now lives in New York City
and London
.
, Eric Bogosian
and Tom Stoppard
. He has also appeared in a number of television shows, such as Law & Order
and Law & Order: SVU, and several successful movies, such as The Sixth Sense
, Unbreakable and Analyze That
.
In 2006 he was nominated for an Independent Spirit Award as Best Supporting Actor for his work in the film The War Within
.
Bamji spent the whole of 2007 working in Europe on a new piece of theatre called A Disappearing Number
. The piece played in Germany, Holland, Vienna and finally had a sold-out run at the Barbican Theatre in London's West End. The piece was produced by the British company Complicite, and conceived and directed by Complicite artistic director, Simon McBurney
. Firdous played the role of Al Cooper and was also one of the "devisers" of the piece. A Disappearing Number was given the Laurence Olivier Award and Critics' Circle Award for "Best New Play" of 2007, and The Evening Standard Award for "Best Play" of 2007. The piece takes as its inspiration the life of the untaught, genius mathematician Srinivasa Ramanujan
, and his relationship with his mentor, Cambridge Don, G. H. Hardy
.
Personal life
Bamji was born in Mumbai, India and attended Kodaikanal International SchoolKodaikanal International School
Kodaikanal International School is a co-educational independent residential school offering education for grades P-12. It is located on in Kodaikanal, Dindigul, Tamil Nadu, South India. Kodaikanal is a hill station at in the Palani Hills, north-west of Madurai.Early alumni of KIS include US...
, a small American boarding school in the mountains of South India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
. He also grew up in Bahrain
Bahrain
' , officially the Kingdom of Bahrain , is a small island state near the western shores of the Persian Gulf. It is ruled by the Al Khalifa royal family. The population in 2010 stood at 1,214,705, including 235,108 non-nationals. Formerly an emirate, Bahrain was declared a kingdom in 2002.Bahrain is...
and South Carolina
South Carolina
South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...
. Bamji now lives in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
and London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
.
Career
Mr. Bamji has played leading roles in world and American premieres of plays by such noted playwrights as Tony KushnerTony Kushner
Anthony Robert "Tony" Kushner is an American playwright and screenwriter. He received the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1993 for his play, Angels in America: A Gay Fantasia on National Themes, and co-authored with Eric Roth the screenplay for the 2005 film, Munich.-Life and career:Kushner was born...
, Eric Bogosian
Eric Bogosian
Eric Bogosian is an American actor, playwright, monologist, and novelist of Armenian descent.-Personal life:Bogosian, an Armenian-American, was born in Woburn, Massachusetts, the son of Edwina, a hairdresser and instructor, and Henry Bogosian, an accountant. After graduating from Oberlin College,...
and Tom Stoppard
Tom Stoppard
Sir Tom Stoppard OM, CBE, FRSL is a British playwright, knighted in 1997. He has written prolifically for TV, radio, film and stage, finding prominence with plays such as Arcadia, The Coast of Utopia, Every Good Boy Deserves Favour, Professional Foul, The Real Thing, and Rosencrantz and...
. He has also appeared in a number of television shows, such as Law & Order
Law & Order
Law & Order is an American police procedural and legal drama television series, created by Dick Wolf and part of the Law & Order franchise. It aired on NBC, and in syndication on various cable networks. Law & Order premiered on September 13, 1990, and completed its 20th and final season on May 24,...
and Law & Order: SVU, and several successful movies, such as The Sixth Sense
The Sixth Sense
The Sixth Sense is a 1999 American psychological thriller film written and directed by M. Night Shyamalan. The film tells the story of Cole Sear , a troubled, isolated boy who is able to see and talk to the dead, and an equally troubled child psychologist who tries to help him...
, Unbreakable and Analyze That
Analyze That
Analyze That is a 2002 mafia comedy film, and a sequel to the 1999 film Analyze This. The film was directed and co-written by Harold Ramis and stars Robert De Niro and Billy Crystal who respectively reprise their roles as mobster Paul Vitti and psychiatrist Ben Sobel.-Plot:Near the completion of...
.
In 2006 he was nominated for an Independent Spirit Award as Best Supporting Actor for his work in the film The War Within
The War Within (film)
The War Within is a 2005 American drama film directed by Joseph Castelo. Created by Honet Films and released by Magnolia Pictures, the film stars Ayad Akhtar, Firdous Bamji, Nandana Sen and Sarita Choudhury...
.
Bamji spent the whole of 2007 working in Europe on a new piece of theatre called A Disappearing Number
A Disappearing Number
A Disappearing Number is a 2007 play co-written and devised by the Théâtre de Complicité company and directed and conceived by English playwright Simon McBurney. It was inspired by the collaboration during the 1910s between two of the most remarkable pure mathematicians of the twentieth century,...
. The piece played in Germany, Holland, Vienna and finally had a sold-out run at the Barbican Theatre in London's West End. The piece was produced by the British company Complicite, and conceived and directed by Complicite artistic director, Simon McBurney
Simon McBurney
Simon Montagu McBurney, OBE is an English actor, writer and director. He is the founder and artistic director of Théâtre de Complicité in England, now called Complicite.-Early life:...
. Firdous played the role of Al Cooper and was also one of the "devisers" of the piece. A Disappearing Number was given the Laurence Olivier Award and Critics' Circle Award for "Best New Play" of 2007, and The Evening Standard Award for "Best Play" of 2007. The piece takes as its inspiration the life of the untaught, genius mathematician Srinivasa Ramanujan
Srinivasa Ramanujan
Srīnivāsa Aiyangār Rāmānujan FRS, better known as Srinivasa Iyengar Ramanujan was a Indian mathematician and autodidact who, with almost no formal training in pure mathematics, made extraordinary contributions to mathematical analysis, number theory, infinite series and continued fractions...
, and his relationship with his mentor, Cambridge Don, G. H. Hardy
G. H. Hardy
Godfrey Harold “G. H.” Hardy FRS was a prominent English mathematician, known for his achievements in number theory and mathematical analysis....
.