Varada Sethu | |
|---|---|
| Born | Varada Sethumadhavan 12 May 1992 Kerala, India |
| Nationality | British |
| Education | Dame Allan's Schools, Newcastle upon Tyne |
| Alma mater | University of Bristol |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 2010–present |
Varada Sethu (born Varada Sethumadhavan, 12 May 1992) is a British actress. Her credits include Sket (2010), English: An Autumn in London (2012), Doctors (2015), New Blood (2016), Doctor Foster (2017), Hanna (2019), Strike Back: Vendetta (2020), Jurassic World Dominion (2022), and Annika (2023).
She portrayed Detective Sergeant Mishal Ali in Hard Sun (2018), Cinta Kaz in the Disney+ Star Wars series Andor (2022–2025), and Belinda Chandra in Doctor Who (2025).
Varada Sethumadhavan was born on 12 May 1992 in Kerala, India. [1] [2] [3] She and her twin sister Abhaya are of Malayali ancestry. [3] [4] Sethu's parents are doctors. She moved to the North East of England at a young age and she grew up in Benton, Tyne and Wear, [5] near Newcastle upon Tyne. Sethu attended Dame Allan's Schools and was a member of the National Youth Theatre. [5] During her final year of sixth form, Sethu won the 2010 Miss Newcastle competition.[ citation needed ] She went on to study veterinary medicine at University of Bristol, later switching to physiology.[ citation needed ]
Sethu has been performing the Indian classical dance traditions of both Bharatanatyam and Mohiniyattam from a young age. [3] Sethu continued her acting education at the Identity School of Acting in London. [6] [7]
In 2010, Sethu made her debut appearance on screen in the short film Impressions as Samena. [8] In 2011, Sethu landed the role of Kiran in the feature film Sket , [5] then as Meghana Scariah in English: An Autumn in London in 2012. [9] In 2015 she made an appearance as PC Kylie Green in the 2000 TV series Doctors . [9]
Her career continued in 2016 appearing as Peaseblossom in a 2016 TV movie version of A Midsummer Night's Dream . [6] , Now You See Me 2 and New Blood . [9]
In 2017, Sethu appeared as Aisha in two episodes of Doctor Foster . [9] In 2018, Sethu starred as DS Mishal Ali for six episodes in the BBC apocalyptic TV crime series Hard Sun . [10]
In 2019, Sethu performed as a series regular in season seven of Strike Back: Revolution as Lance Corporal Manisha Chetri of the British Army. [11] [12] In 2022, She played rebel Cinta Kaz in both seasons of Andor. [4]
In 2025, Sethu portrayed the companion Belinda Chandra in Doctor Who alongside Ncuti Gatwa as the Fifteenth Doctor in series 15. [13] [14] Prior to this, she played Mundy Flynn in the series 14 episode "Boom". [15]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | Impressions | Sameena | Short film [8] |
| 2011 | Sket | Kiran | [5] |
| 2012 | English: An Autumn in London | Meghana Scariah | |
| 2016 | A Midsummer Night's Dream | Peaseblossom | [16] |
| Now You See Me 2 | Tressler Assistant | [16] | |
| 2018 | Special Delivery | Parminder | Short film |
| 2020 | Bad News | Mindi | Short film |
| 2022 | Jurassic World Dominion | Shira | |
| I Came By | Naserine 'Naz' Raheem | ||
| 2025 | 100 Nights of Hero | Esa |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | Doctors | PC Kylie Green | 1 episode |
| 2016 | New Blood | Indian Nurse | 3 episodes [16] |
| 2017 | Doctor Foster | Aisha | 2 episodes [10] [16] |
| 2018 | Hard Sun | DS Mishal Ali | 6 episodes [10] |
| 2019 | Strike Back: Revolution | Lance Corporal Manisha Chetri, British Army | 10 episodes [12] |
| Hanna | CIA Analyst McArthur | 2 episodes | |
| 2020 | Strike Back: Vendetta | Lance Corporal Manisha Chetri, British Army | 9 episodes |
| 2023–present | Annika | DS Harper Weston | 4 episodes |
| 2022–2025 | Andor | Cinta Kaz | 10 episodes |
| 2024 | Doctor Who | Mundy Flynn | Series 14: "Boom" (supporting cast) |
| 2025 | Belinda Chandra | Series 15 (main cast) | |
| TBA | The Other Bennet Sister | Ann Baxter | Filming |
