Das DD

Last updated

Das DD
Born (1990-03-01) 1 March 1990 (age 34)
Singapore
Other names
  • Das
  • Dasa Dharamahsena
Alma mater Nanyang Polytechnic
Occupations
  • Host
  • actor
  • comedian
Years active2015−present [1]

Dharmadasa D. Dharamahsena (born 1 March 1990), [2] known professionally as Das DD, is a Singaporean television host, actor and comedian who speaks fluently in Tamil, English, Mandarin and Malay. [3] [4] In 2023, he became the first person of Indian descent to be nominated for and win in a performance-based category at Mediacorp's Star Awards. [5]

Contents

Early life and career

An only child, Das DD's father is a Malaysian and his mother is a Singaporean who grew up in a Malay kampong. [6] The first language Das DD spoke was Tamil, at his mother's request, when he was in nursery school. He subsequently learned English and Mandarin, the latter which is due to the reason that Tamil was not offered as a second language by his preschool and kindergarten. Both his parents used to speak Malay to each other, and Das DD had also used the language to communicate with an Indonesian domestic helper and his grasp on the language became better as he had a close group of Malay-speaking friends when serving military service. [3]

Das DD got his start in the entertainment industry through appearing as a guest host on radio station Kiss 92FM with Joshua Simon on his show Joshua’s Goodnight Kiss. [3] At Kiss 92FM, he became acquainted with John Klass and his wife, who both enlisted him as a production manager for a music video. Through the job, he was roped in by Loretta Lopez for a project where she banded budding stand-up comedians for a show. Some time later, he was invited by Ryan Tan from Night Owl Cinematics (NOC) to join his company. Das DD left the YouTube outfit in 2021. [3]

In 2022, Das DD made his film debut in the Chinese New Year comedy-drama Reunion Dinner . While promoting the film on the online series, #JustSwipeLah, Das DD attracted the attention of the producers, who later reached out with an offer for him to host the show. [5]

The following year, he was named Best Rising Star at the Star Awards 2023. [5] [7]

In early April 2023, he signed an exclusive talent contract with digital content site SGAG. [8]

He has also appeared in several Vasantham series and Suria shows. [9] [6]

Filmography

He has appeared in the following programmes and films: [10]

Television series

Variety show

Film

Awards and nominations

YearAwardCategoryNominated workResultRef
2023 Star Awards 2023 Top 3 Most Popular Rising Stars—Nominated [15]
Best Rising Star #JustSwipeLahWon
2024 Star Awards 2024 Top 3 Most Popular Rising Stars—Nominated

Related Research Articles

Manglish is an informal form of Malaysian English with features of an English-based creole principally used in Malaysia. It is heavily influenced by the main languages of the country, Malay, Chinese languages, and Tamil. It is not one of the official languages spoken in Malaysia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mediacorp</span> Singaporean commercial media company

Mediacorp Pte. Ltd. is a Singaporean state-owned public media conglomerate, based in 1 Stars Avenue, One-north. Owned by Temasek Holdings—the investment arm of the Government of Singapore—it owns and operates television channels, radio, and digital media properties. As of 2022, Mediacorp employs over 3,000 staff in total with a larger part of them are in both public and private sector broadcasting.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Samy Vellu</span> Malaysian politician (1936–2022)

Tun Samy Vellu s/o Sangalimuthu was a Malaysian politician who served as Minister of Works from June 1983 to June 1989 and again from May 1995 to March 2008, Minister of Energy, Telecommunications and Posts from June 1989 to May 1995, Minister of Works and Public Amenities from September 1979 to June 1983 and Member of Parliament (MP) for Sungai Siput from September 1974 to March 2008. He was a member and served as 7th President of the Malaysian Indian Congress (MIC), a component party of the ruling Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition, from October 1979 to December 2010. He is the longest-serving MIC president by holding the position for 31 years and one of the longest-serving Cabinet ministers by being in the Cabinet for 29 years. In December 2010, he announced his retirement from politics, paving the way for then MIC Deputy President G. Palanivel to succeed him as the new party president.

<i>Crimewatch</i> (Singaporean TV series) Singaporean TV series or program

Crimewatch is a Singaporean television programme produced by the National Crime Prevention Council (NCPC) in collaboration with the Singapore Police Force (SPF). It is aired on Mediacorp's Channel 5, Channel 8, Suria and Vasantham.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Languages of Singapore</span> Overview of the languages spoken in Singapore

The languages of Singapore are English, Chinese, Malay and Tamil, with the lingua franca between Singaporeans being English, the de facto main language. Singaporeans often speak Singlish among themselves, an English creole arising from centuries of contact between Singapore's internationalized society and its legacy of being a British colony. Linguists formally define it as Singapore Colloquial English. A multitude of other languages are also used in Singapore. They consist of several varieties of languages under the families of the Austronesian, Dravidian, Indo-European and Sino-Tibetan languages. The Constitution of Singapore states that the national language of Singapore is Malay. This plays a symbolic role, as Malays are constitutionally recognised as the indigenous peoples of Singapore, and it is the government's duty to protect their language and heritage.

Singlish is the English-based creole or patois spoken colloquially in Singapore. English is one of Singapore's official languages, along with Malay, Mandarin, and Tamil. Although English is the lexifier language, Singlish has its unique slang and syntax, which are more pronounced in informal speech. It is usually a mixture of English, Hokkien, Cantonese, Malay, and Tamil, and sometimes other Chinese languages like Teochew, Hainanese, Hakka, Hockchew, and Mandarin. For example, pek chek means to be annoyed or frustrated, and originates from Singaporean Hokkien 迫促. It is used in casual contexts between Singaporeans, but is avoided in formal events when certain Singlish phrases may be considered unedifying. Singapore English can be broken into two subcategories. Standard Singapore English (SSE) and Colloquial Singapore English (CSE) or Singlish as many locals call it. The relationship between SSE and Singlish is viewed as a diglossia, in which SSE is restricted to be used in situations of formality where Singlish/CSE is used in most other circumstances.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Languages of Malaysia</span> Languages spoken in Malaysia

The indigenous languages of Malaysia belong to the Mon-Khmer and Malayo-Polynesian families. The national, or official, language is Malay which is the mother tongue of the majority Malay ethnic group. The main ethnic groups within Malaysia are the Malay people, Han Chinese people and Tamil people, with many other ethnic groups represented in smaller numbers, each with its own languages. The largest native languages spoken in East Malaysia are the Iban, Dusunic, and Kadazan languages. English is widely understood and spoken within the urban areas of the country; the English language is a compulsory subject in primary and secondary education. It is also the main medium of instruction within most private colleges and private universities. English may take precedence over Malay in certain official contexts as provided for by the National Language Act, especially in the states of Sabah and Sarawak, where it may be the official working language. Furthermore, the law of Malaysia is commonly taught and read in English, as the unwritten laws of Malaysia continue to be partially derived from pre-1957 English common law, which is a legacy of past British colonisation of the constituents forming Malaysia. In addition, authoritative versions of constitutional law and statutory law are continuously available in both Malay and English.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sunil (actor)</span> Indian actor

Indukuri Sunil Varma, known mononymously as Sunil, is an Indian actor who works predominantly in Telugu films, and has also featured in a few Tamil films. Noted for his comic roles, Sunil has appeared in over 180 films in his career, including a few lead roles. He has won three state Nandi Awards and two Filmfare Awards South. He was widely considered as one of Tollywood's finest comedians during his peak in the 2000s, most known for his distinct laugh and delivery of jokes.

South Asian languages in Singapore are mainly used by the country's 348,119 Indian Singaporean residents, who form about 9.2% of Singaporean citizens and permanent residents. As a result of historical migration and settlement patterns, Indian Singaporeans came to the island from various parts of South Asia speaking a variety of South Asian languages, mostly Tamil. Today, most ethnic Indians in Singapore are locally born second, third, fourth or even fifth generation descendants of immigrant forefathers. In addition, a substantial minority are recent immigrants from the Indian subcontinent.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brandon Wong (actor)</span> Malaysian-Singaporean actor (born 1971)

Brandon Wong is a Malaysian-Singaporean actor. He was born in Malaysia and speaks Mandarin, English, Malay and Cantonese.

<i>Kadalora Kavithaigal</i> 1986 film by Bharathiraja

Kadalora Kavithaigal is a 1986 Indian Tamil-language romantic drama film directed by Bharathiraja. The film stars Sathyaraj and Rekha, with Raja, Janagaraj and Kamala Kamesh in supporting roles. It is about transformation of a ruffian, who has a prison record and his understanding of love through an elementary education. In that process, he falls in love with the school teacher.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Zhu Houren</span> Singapore actor (born 1955)

Zhu Houren is a Singaporean actor and filmmaker. In 2003, he made his feature film directorial debut with After School and in 2014 he produced the basketball film, Meeting the Giant.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shabir Sulthan</span> Musical artist

Shabir Tabare Alam, known professionally as Shabir Sulthan, is a Singaporean singer-songwriter, record producer, music composer, and performer. Most of his lyrics are in Tamil.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vir Das</span> Indian comedian and actor

Vir Das is an Indian comedian, actor and musician. After beginning a career in standup comedy, Das moved to Hindi cinema starring in films like Badmaash Company (2010), Delhi Belly (2011), and Go Goa Gone (2013) in supporting roles. In 2017, he performed the Netflix special Abroad Understanding. Das has appeared in approximately 35 plays, over 100 stand-up comedy shows, 18 films, eight TV shows and six comedy specials. He has written comedic columns for Femina, Maxim, Exotica, DNA and Tehelka. In 2019, he made his debut in American television with the television series, Whiskey Cavalier. He won the 2023 International Emmy Award for Best Comedy Series for the Netflix comedy special Vir Das: Landing.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kumarimuthu</span> Former Tamil film actor, comedian and politician

Kumarimuthu was a Tamil film character actor, comedian and politician of the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK). He was known for his unique comical laugh.

Tamil television drama or Tamil serials are a genre of Tamil-language television produced in India, Sri Lanka, Singapore and Malaysia. All major TV networks in India. produce a variety of Soap opera series including family drama, comedy, romance, history stories, horror, devotional, fantasy stories and many others.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yogi Babu</span> Indian actor and comedian (born 1985)

Yogi Babu is an Indian actor and comedian, who appears in Tamil films. He is a three time Ananda Vikatan Cinema Award winner, he performed in Aandavan Kattalai (2016), Kolamavu Kokila (2018) and Pariyerum Perumal (2018). He is also a recipient of three SIIMA Awards.

<i>Reunion Dinner</i> (film) 2022 Singaporean Mandarin-language comedy film

Reunion Dinner is a 2022 Singaporean, Mandarin-language, Chinese New Year comedy drama film. It tells the story of a soon-to-be-married couple who arrange for their parents to meet for the first time over Chinese New Year reunion dinner. But as the boyfriend is estranged from his mother, he fakes a family to impress them instead.

Seow Sin Nee is a Malaysian host, actress and radio DJ who made her debut through the Mediacorp radio DJ talent competition, The Sound Makers, in 2019. Seow later went on to win the Channel 8 talent search competition, Beyond The Camera. Since then, she has appeared as a host on various shows, including the bite-sized infotainment series #JustSwipeLah and The Sheng Siong Show. She has also been cast in a number of television series, including Your World in Mine (2022) and Fix My Life (2023), and is a member of the group "4567", created by Mediacorp's artiste management arm The Celebrity Agency, along with Jernelle Oh, Juin Teh and Gini Chang.

References

  1. ↑ "Star Awards winner Das DD on the good friends & 8 years of hard work it took to land historic win". mothership.sg. Retrieved 6 June 2023.
  2. ↑ "Dasa Dharamahsena". Facebook. Retrieved 6 June 2023.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Goh, Bryan (12 October 2020). "Dasa Dharamahsena on How He's Reshaping the Local Comedy Scene". Men's Folio. Retrieved 6 June 2023.
  4. ↑ "Das DD is first Indian nominated for his performance at Star Awards". The New Paper. 5 April 2023. Retrieved 6 June 2023.
  5. 1 2 3 "Singapore comedian Das DD's journey from PM Lee 'magic cup' meme to Star Awards winner". CNA Lifestyle. Retrieved 6 June 2023.
  6. 1 2 "跨界四语言频道 印度裔网红Das圆明星梦 | 早报". www.zaobao.com.sg (in Simplified Chinese). Retrieved 6 June 2023.
  7. ↑ "'I'm just a simple boy from Woodlands': Das DD becomes first Indian nominee and winner at Star Awards 2023". AsiaOne. 10 April 2023. Retrieved 6 June 2023.
  8. ↑ "After making history at Star Awards, Das DD wants to continue making people laugh". sg.style.yahoo.com. 13 April 2023. Retrieved 6 June 2023.
  9. ↑ "Man who mimicked PM Lee makes film debut". www.tamilmurasu.com.sg. 4 February 2022. Retrieved 6 June 2023.
  10. ↑ "Das DD". mewatch. Retrieved 6 June 2023.
  11. ↑ "Mandarin-Speaking Indian YouTuber Das DD Makes Movie Debut In Reunion Dinner, Says PM Lee Texted Him After Seeing His 'Magic Cup' Video". 8days. Retrieved 6 June 2023.
  12. ↑ "【红星大奖2023】印籍网红Das夺"最佳潜力星" 流利华语激动致辞". 8world Entertainment Lifestyle (in Chinese (Singapore)). 6 June 2023. Retrieved 6 June 2023.
  13. ↑ Lee, Jan (5 April 2023). "Das DD is first Indian nominated for his performance at Star Awards". The Straits Times. Retrieved 6 June 2023.
  14. ↑ "Local CNY 2024 movie King of Hawkers to star Hugo Ng, Liu Lingling, Dawn Yeoh". AsiaOne. 29 September 2023. Retrieved 2 October 2023.
  15. ↑ "List of Star Awards 2023 Award Nominees". 14 April 2023. Archived from the original on 14 April 2023. Retrieved 6 June 2023.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.