Ray Panthaki
Encyclopedia
Ray Panthaki is a British-born actor, film producer
and writer.
Born in London, Panthaki is best known for the roles he played on BBC
soap opera
EastEnders
as Ronny Ferreira (2003–2005) and as 'Hassan B' the nemesis to Sacha Baron Cohen
's Ali G in Ali G Indahouse
. He also appeared in the hit British films 28 Days Later
, Ali G Indahouse
, REHAB, Tube Tales
, Bollywood Queen
, Provoked, and the 2006 cult box office hit Kidulthood
which he also produced. In 2006 he was nominated for "Best Actor in a Play" at the TMA Theatre Awards for his role in Gladiator Games, which was based on the highly-publicised true story of teenager Zahid Mubarek
who was beaten to death by his racist cellmate in Feltham Young Offenders' Institution
. Later that year he set up the London-based production company Urban Way.
Known for tackling gritty projects in both his acting and producing, he lived homeless on the streets in preparation for his role as a homeless heroin addict in the controversial movie The Feral Generation
, which was awarded "Best UK Feature" at the Swansea Film Festival 2008. Panthaki is currently filming the lead role in City Rats alongside Danny Dyer
, Tamer Hassan
and Susan Lynch
produced by Urban Way Productions and will make his West End
debut in July 2008 in the hard hitting play In My Name at the Trafalgar Studios.
Has worked with some of the UK's finest Film Directors including Danny Boyle
, Gurinder Chadha
, Armando Ianucci, Ben Elton
, Antonia Bird
and Mark Mylod
Panthaki dated his former Eastenders co-star actress Brooke Kinsella
, from 2005, but ended in 2010
He was in It's a Wonderful Afterlife
Directed by Gurinder Chadha
Is currently starring in 'The Man Inside' alongside Peter Mullan
, Ashley 'Bashy' Thomas and Michelle Ryan
. He is also producing the Film through his company Urban Way
In Oct 2011 it was announced that Panthaki will appear on stage at The Royal Court Theatre for the second time in his career in the play The Westbridge by Rachel De-Lahay.
Film producer
A film producer oversees and delivers a film project to all relevant parties while preserving the integrity, voice and vision of the film. They will also often take on some financial risk by using their own money, especially during the pre-production period, before a film is fully financed.The...
and writer.
Born in London, Panthaki is best known for the roles he played on BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
soap opera
Soap opera
A soap opera, sometimes called "soap" for short, is an ongoing, episodic work of dramatic fiction presented in serial format on radio or as television programming. The name soap opera stems from the original dramatic serials broadcast on radio that had soap manufacturers, such as Procter & Gamble,...
EastEnders
EastEnders
EastEnders is a British television soap opera, first broadcast in the United Kingdom on BBC One on 19 February 1985 and continuing to today. EastEnders storylines examine the domestic and professional lives of the people who live and work in the fictional London Borough of Walford in the East End...
as Ronny Ferreira (2003–2005) and as 'Hassan B' the nemesis to Sacha Baron Cohen
Sacha Baron Cohen
Sacha Noam Baron Cohen is an English stand-up comedian, actor, writer, and voice artist. He is most widely known for his portrayal of three unorthodox fictional characters: Ali G, Borat, and Brüno...
's Ali G in Ali G Indahouse
Ali G Indahouse
Ali G Indahouse is a British comedy film directed by Mark Mylod and starring the fictional character Ali G, who is performed by British comedian Sacha Baron Cohen...
. He also appeared in the hit British films 28 Days Later
28 Days Later
28 Days Later is an acclaimed 2002 British horror film directed by Danny Boyle. The screenplay was written by Alex Garland, and the film stars Cillian Murphy, Naomie Harris, Brendan Gleeson, Megan Burns, and Christopher Eccleston...
, Ali G Indahouse
Ali G
Ali G is a satirical fictional character invented and performed by English comedian Sacha Baron Cohen. Originally appearing on Channel 4's Eleven O'Clock show, Ali G is the title character of Channel 4's Da Ali G Show, original episodes of which aired in 2000 and on HBO in 2003–2004, and is the...
, REHAB, Tube Tales
Tube Tales
Tube Tales is a collection of nine short films based on the true-life experiences of London Underground passengers as submitted to Time Out magazine. The stories were scripted and filmed independently of each other...
, Bollywood Queen
Bollywood Queen
Bollywood Queen is an Indian take on the William Shakespeare play Romeo and Juliet, directed by Jeremy Wooding and starring Preeya Kalidas and James McAvoy in the lead roles. Also produced by Jeremy Wooding, the film was released in 2003.-Plot:...
, Provoked, and the 2006 cult box office hit Kidulthood
Kidulthood
Kidulthood is a 2006 British drama film about the life of several teenagers in Ladbroke Grove and Latimer Road area of inner west London. It was directed by Menhaj Huda and written by Noel Clarke, who also stars in the film and directed the sequel, Adulthood...
which he also produced. In 2006 he was nominated for "Best Actor in a Play" at the TMA Theatre Awards for his role in Gladiator Games, which was based on the highly-publicised true story of teenager Zahid Mubarek
Zahid Mubarek
Zahid Mubarek was a British Asian teenager who was brutally murdered by his cellmate on March 21, 2000, at the Feltham Young Offenders' Institution in southwest London. He was already inside Feltham when his killer, 20-year-old Robert Stewart - was transferred to his cell.-Family...
who was beaten to death by his racist cellmate in Feltham Young Offenders' Institution
Feltham Young Offenders' Institution
HM Prison Feltham is a prison for male juveniles and Young Offenders Institution, located near Feltham town in the London Borough of Hounslow, in southwest London, England...
. Later that year he set up the London-based production company Urban Way.
Known for tackling gritty projects in both his acting and producing, he lived homeless on the streets in preparation for his role as a homeless heroin addict in the controversial movie The Feral Generation
The Feral Generation
The Feral Generation is an award winning British feature film written and directed by Welsh filmmaker Andrew Jones and starring Ray Panthaki and Brooke Kinsella in the leading roles. The film was shot in Swansea and Cardiff, South Wales in 2007 and was the first film to be produced by London based...
, which was awarded "Best UK Feature" at the Swansea Film Festival 2008. Panthaki is currently filming the lead role in City Rats alongside Danny Dyer
Danny Dyer
Danny Dyer is an English actor, media personality, and chairman of Greenwich Borough, a non-League football team.-Biography:Daniel John Dyer was born in Custom House, an area of East London, to Antony and Christine Dyer...
, Tamer Hassan
Tamer Hassan
Tamer Hassan is a British actor of Turkish Cypriot descent.-Early life:Hassan was born in London, England into a Turkish Cypriot family. Having sustained an injury in boxing, Hassan started to run nightclubs and restaurants and is now the owner, chairman and player/coach of Greenwich Borough and...
and Susan Lynch
Susan Lynch
Susan Lynch is an actor from Northern Ireland.-Early life:Lynch was born in Corrinshego, Newry, County Armagh, Northern Ireland to an Italian mother and Irish father. Her brother is actor John Lynch, she has a sister, Pauline, who is a drama teacher at St...
produced by Urban Way Productions and will make his West End
West End theatre
West End theatre is a popular term for mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres of London's 'Theatreland', the West End. Along with New York's Broadway theatre, West End theatre is usually considered to represent the highest level of commercial theatre in the English speaking...
debut in July 2008 in the hard hitting play In My Name at the Trafalgar Studios.
Has worked with some of the UK's finest Film Directors including Danny Boyle
Danny Boyle
Daniel "Danny" Boyle is an English filmmaker and producer. He is best known for his work on films such as Slumdog Millionaire, 127 Hours, 28 Days Later, Sunshine and Trainspotting. For Slumdog Millionaire, Boyle won numerous awards in 2008, including the Academy Award for Best Director...
, Gurinder Chadha
Gurinder Chadha
Gurinder Chadha , OBE, is a British film director of Indian origin. Most of her films explore the lives of Indians living in the United Kingdom. She is best known for the hit films Bhaji on the Beach , Bend It Like Beckham , Bride and Prejudice and Angus, Thongs and Perfect Snogging...
, Armando Ianucci, Ben Elton
Ben Elton
Benjamin Charles "Ben" Elton is an English comedian, author, playwright and director. He was a leading figure in the British alternative comedy movement of the 1980s, as a writer on such cult series as The Young Ones and Blackadder, as well as also a successful stand-up comedian on stage and TV....
, Antonia Bird
Antonia Bird
Antonia Bird is an English television drama and feature film director.-Life and career:Bird was born in London. She began her career at the Royal Court Theatre before moving to television in the mid 1980s, directing episodes of EastEnders , Casualty , and drama serials like Thin Air and The Men's...
and Mark Mylod
Mark Mylod
Mark Mylod is a British film and television director. Mylod has directed several shows both in the United States and in the United Kingdom, many of them being for the BBC...
Panthaki dated his former Eastenders co-star actress Brooke Kinsella
Brooke Kinsella
Brooke Kinsella, MBE is an English actress and author. A graduate of the Anna Scher Theatre School, Kinsella has been acting since childhood. She has had various roles on television and in film...
, from 2005, but ended in 2010
He was in It's a Wonderful Afterlife
It's a Wonderful Afterlife
It's a Wonderful Afterlife is a 2010 British comedy film directed by Gurinder Chadha. The screenplay centers on an Indian mother whose obsession with marrying off her daughter leads her into the realm of serial murder. It was filmed primarily in English, with some Hindi and Punjabi dialogue...
Directed by Gurinder Chadha
Gurinder Chadha
Gurinder Chadha , OBE, is a British film director of Indian origin. Most of her films explore the lives of Indians living in the United Kingdom. She is best known for the hit films Bhaji on the Beach , Bend It Like Beckham , Bride and Prejudice and Angus, Thongs and Perfect Snogging...
Is currently starring in 'The Man Inside' alongside Peter Mullan
Peter Mullan
Peter Mullan is a Scottish actor and film-maker who has been appearing in films since 1990.-Early life:Mullan, the sixth of eight children, was born in Peterhead in the northeast of Scotland, the son of Patricia, a nurse, and Charles Mullan, a lab technician who worked at Glasgow University. He...
, Ashley 'Bashy' Thomas and Michelle Ryan
Michelle Ryan
Michelle Claire Ryan is an English actress.She is best known for portraying the role of Zoe Slater on BBC soap opera EastEnders. In 2007, she starred in the short lived American television series Bionic Woman...
. He is also producing the Film through his company Urban Way
In Oct 2011 it was announced that Panthaki will appear on stage at The Royal Court Theatre for the second time in his career in the play The Westbridge by Rachel De-Lahay.