Asif Basra

Biography

Asif Basra was an Indian film and theatre actor. He has appeared in several international English-language productions, such as the acclaimed 2006 movie Outsourced (United States), Tandoori Love (Switzerland/ Germany), and One Night with the King (United States) with Omar Sharif and Peter O'Toole.

Asif has starred in a number of popular Hindi movies, including Once Upon a Time in Mumbai, Jab We Met, and Kai Po Che. His performance in Rahul Dholakia's Parzania received much critical acclaim. 

In 2014, he starred in the Tamil film Anjaan, and most recently he has acted alongside Ranbir Kapoor in his new film Roy. He also worked in the first Himachali language film Saanjh.

Asif has also worked with some of India's leading directors, including Anurag Kashyap on his film Black Friday. Other film roles have included playing the tailor in the Hindi movie Lamhaa: The Untold Story of Kashmir and a fakir in Janaki Vishwanathan's Yeh Hai Bakrapur.

Asif has starred in many plays in India and abroad, performing in English, Hindi, and Urdu theatre productions. He toured India, the United States, the UK, and Dubai playing five characters in Feroz Khan's production of Mahatma V/s Gandhi. 

He performed the title role in Manav Kaul's acclaimed Mamtaz Bhai Patang Waale and played a 12-year-old child with Spina Bifida in Main Bhi Superman.

Asif Basra was born in Amravati on 27 July 1967. In 1989 he moved to Mumbai to pursue his acting career and continues to live and work there. On 12 November 2020, he was found hanging in his apartment in Dharamshala with the causes of his suicide being investigated.