Ali Kazmi

Biography

Ali Arsalan Kazmi (Urdu: علی کاظمی; born 31 October 1981), is a Pakistani-Canadian actor, director, and producer.

He appears in English, Hindi, Urdu, and Punjabi language films and television series.

Apart from acting he has also worked as a host, director, producer, and model.

Kazmi was born to the actor Rahat Kazmi and Sahira Kazmi (née Ansari), a well-known TV director, producer, and actress who's herself the daughter of the late Indian film actor Shyam, on 31 October 1981 in Karachi, Pakistan. 

He began his career as a child actor in the 1995 TV series Zikr Hai Kai Saal Ka on PTV Home and then continued playing supporting or minor roles in television which includes Manzil (2006). After completing his studies in Karachi, he moved to Canada and began acting and modeling thereby appearing in TV series, commercials, and plays.

 He also worked at China Syndrome Productions as a director and producer. One of his initial major roles was as a villain in the film The Dependables (2014). He also played a negative role in Mehreen Jabbar's Jackson Heights which gave him more popularity in Pakistan.

In 2015, he starred in two commercially successful films, Rohit Jugraj Chauhan's Sardaar Ji (2015) and Deepa Mehta's Beeba Boys (2015) with Sarah Allen, Randeep Hooda, and Gulshan Grover. Kazmi has also appeared in the short film Coffee at Laundromat (2015) for which he won Best Actor in a Short Film award at the World Music & Independent Film Festival 2016.

He also appeared in Liam Neeson's short-lived TV series Taken (2016). "I play Marzoki, a fast-talking, sharp, quirky analyst", said Kazmi in an interview regarding Taken. He appeared in Mehreen Jabbar's Dobara Phir Se (2016) and the animated film The Breadwinner (2017) produced by Angelina Jolie.

Ali was also signed to appear in Ajay Devgan's Shivaay. But due to not getting permission to shoot in Canada where Kazmi is based, some changes were made in the script and his role was removed. He is currently playing the role of Abid in Tu Ishq Hai.

Kazmi's upcoming project Umro Ayyar-A New Beginning is expected to be released in 2022 , directed by Azfar Jafri under the banner of VR Chili Production. Umro Ayyar is an action thriller movie based on the revival of the Persian legend of the 90s.

The other cast of Umro Ayyar is Usman Mukhtar, Sanam Saeed, Faran Tahir, Adnan Siddiqui & more.

Kazmi married his high school sweetheart Alizeh Khorasanee, whom he knew since the age of 12. They married in Karachi and settled in Toronto. They have two sons.

Kazmi speaks English, Urdu, Punjabi, Persian, Pashto, basic French, and Arabic.