Qasim Akhtar

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Qasim Akhtar (born 8 June 1991) is an English actor, known for his roles as Chesney Karib in the Channel 4 comedy drama Shameless and Zeedan Nazir in the ITV soap opera Coronation Street .

Contents

Early life

Akhtar was born and raised in Burnage, Manchester to a British Pakistani family. [1] Since childhood, Akhtar had an interest in acting. He trained at the Manchester School of Acting. [2]

Career

Prior to making his breakthrough appearance in Shameless, Akhtar had his first acting experience through the 2006-released Mischief Night, written and directed by Penny Woolcock, and in the film, he stars as Asif Khan. [3]

Akhtar gained prominence through his role as Chesney Khan in Shameless, appearing in 85 episodes between 2007 and 2013. This was followed by two different roles in Waterloo Road: Aron in 2007 and Wayne Bodley in 2011. [4]

In 2014, Akhtar joined the cast of the long-running soap opera Coronation Street as Zeedan Nazir, a son of Kal Nazir (played by Jimi Mistry). [5] Upon his first exit of the show in 2018, Akhtar began another stint within the show in 2021 but exited again in February 2023. [6]

Personal life

Akhtar was injured in a quad bike accident in 2018 and took up fitness. [7] He leads a relatively private life but he has expressed his platform being used to discuss the state of representation of British Asian actors in television and film. [8]

Accolades

He was nominated as Best Newcomer at the British Soap Awards for his work on the role of Zeedan Nazir in Coronation Street. [9] The depiction of the complex characters from cultures similar to his has been applauded for bringing authenticity to the British TV. [10]

Filmography

YearTitleRoleNotes
2006 Mischief Night Asif KhansMovie
2007–2013 Shameless Chesney Karib Main role
2007 Waterloo Road Aron1 episode
2007How Life HappensQasShort film
2011 Young Dracula Vicious Vampire1 episode
2011 Waterloo Road Wayne Bodley1 episode
2012 Doctors Bhavin Hassan1 episode
2014–2018, 2021–2023 Coronation Street Zeedan Nazir Regular role

References

  1. ↑ Smith, John (2020). "Rising Stars of British Television". Entertainment Weekly UK, pp. 45-47
  2. ↑ Alumni Success Stories". Manchester School of Acting Official Website, accessed March 2025
  3. ↑ Wilson, Emma (2015). "From Mischief Night to Primetime: Qasim Akhtar's Journey". British Film Institute Quarterly, Vol. 23, pp. 112-115
  4. ↑ Davies, Charlotte (2018). "Actors Who Returned to Waterloo Road". Television and Film Review, Issue 42, pp. 28-32
  5. ↑ Johnson, Robert (2016). "New Faces on the Street: How Zeedan Nazir Changed Coronation Street". Soap Opera Digest UK, Vol. 8, pp. 15-18
  6. ↑ Brown, Sarah (2023). "Qasim Akhtar's Final Scenes: An Analysis". Television Drama Review, Issue 67, pp. 89-93
  7. ↑ Thompson, Mark (2018). "Coronation Street Star Recovers From Accident". The Guardian, 24 April 2018
  8. ↑ Akhtar, Qasim (2022). Interview with British Asian Network. BBC Radio, 12 June 2022
  9. ↑ British Soap Awards 2015: Full List of Nominees". Radio Times, May 2015
  10. ↑ Khan, Aisha (2021). "Representation Matters: British Asian Actors in Mainstream Media". Cultural Studies Journal, Vol. 14(2), pp. 156-172
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