As I delve into the inspiring journey of this remarkable individual, I can’t help but feel a profound sense of admiration and empathy for his resilience and determination. Born with talent and grit, he faced challenges that would have deterred many, yet he persevered, transforming his life from a nomadic existence in a camper van to standing shoulder-to-shoulder with the greats of British cinema.
In the year 2002, Adeel Akhtar found himself at a significant juncture. Having recently completed his law degree as a fulfillment of his father’s wishes, he was just 21 years old and faced with the prospect of embarking on a legal career. However, an unexpected opportunity presented itself.
At the time, my girlfriend was trying out for a drama school in New York, and I was her acting partner, as he explains. One day, when I returned home, the drama school contacted us to offer me a spot. Akhtar had been passionate about drama since his youth and found himself at a crossroads. “Should I pursue a career in law,” he recalls, “or should I seize this opportunity to escape and embark on a fresh, uncertain life filled with dread?” Ultimately, Akhtar chose the path less traveled.
Currently, he’s one of the most sought-after actors in this nation, implying that the risk was worthwhile. Beginning with his breakthrough performance in Four Lions back in 2010, he’s starred in a series of critically acclaimed TV shows such as Sherwood, Utopia, Unforgotten, and Sweet Tooth. His historic win at the BAFTA television best actor awards in 2017 for Murdered by My Father made him the first non-white individual to do so. In 2022, he was again nominated for a BAFTA, this time for his role in the highly praised romantic drama Ali & Ava.
We are meeting in a north London photo studio to talk about his latest primetime role in Showtrial, the second series of the BBC legal drama, in which he plays defence solicitor Sam Malik, tasked with representing a police officer (Michael Socha) who stands accused of murdering a climate-change activist. “I’ve definitely cornered the market in being the dishevelled lawyer or police investigator,” Akhtar says. “The parts I get asked to play are usually ones where the idea of them being dishevelled is usually in the stage direction somewhere.”
In the five episodes of Showtrial, the question that arises is whether the activist’s death was an accident or something more suspicious. Given the recent relevance of police misconduct, I inquire from Akhtar if he has ever encountered any issues with the police. He responds by saying that he has been stopped and searched, but they found nothing on him afterward.
A particularly harrowing incident unfolded when he traveled to New York to begin his drama school studies, only to be apprehended by the FBI under the suspicion of being a terrorist. Reflecting on this experience, he expresses: “It was a deeply troubling thought about the potential consequences I might have faced.” He recounts chilling tales of individuals who seemingly vanished in America, presumably detained there and subsequently transferred to Guantanamo.
Reminiscing about the time I was singled out stirred up old, unpleasant memories of being a young boy, constantly targeted with stones and questioning if such treatment would be my constant fate. Born in a village of Buckinghamshire, my Kenyan mother and Pakistani father crossed paths while working at Heathrow Airport. They initially settled in Hounslow, west London, and enrolled me in Cheltenham College to provide what they believed was the ultimate English education. However, I never felt I truly embodied that stereotypical English identity.
Did it feel overwhelming or distressing at the age of 11 to be separated from your parents and sent to boarding school? He replies, “I don’t think children truly understand what trauma means at that age, but I do recall feeling like an outsider in that school because there weren’t many who looked like me. Now, as a 43-year-old, it makes me ponder how such experiences might influence one’s personal growth when you’re constantly perceived as being different.
Originally, his parents enrolled him in a private school out of kindness, yet as a father of two boys (with wife Alexis Burke), Akhtar questions the benefits of attending a public school. Instead, he chooses to send his children to a state school. He explains, “My kids attend a public school.” For him, sending a child to school is not just for education but also to foster an awareness of the world. He believes that going to a public school prepares a child better by instilling an understanding that you’ll be entering a diverse world where you share commonalities with others.
At Cheltenham, Akhtar first encountered the chance to delve into acting. He played a gravedigger in Hamlet and participated in a friend-led production of Harold Pinter’s The Homecoming. “I felt as though people were truly paying attention to what I was saying,” he reminisces. “There was an inherent strength in this craft.
Growing up, he never felt represented in movies or plays, but that changed when he discovered Hanif Kureishi’s work. “I read The Buddha of Suburbia and saw My Beautiful Laundrette,” he reminisces. “Before then, the portrayals of people like us on TV were limited to certain cultural, religious, or problem-focused narratives – it was the first time I recognized myself in a story.
Akhtar pursued acting alongside his legal studies as per his father’s wishes, yet two distinct paths that intersected in the year 2002 during autumn, when he got a chance to attend The Actors Studio in New York. This prospect seemed too enticing to ignore. “I approached him and shared my intentions,” he reminisces. “He withdrew emotionally. He couldn’t prevent me, but at the same time, his anxiety was palpable because the thought of being an actor is daunting.
It turned out that concerns were valid as, upon graduating from drama school, he transitioned from one bartending job to another. “I was going out quite frequently and enjoying myself excessively,” he admits, “but the fun eventually lost its charm.” In 2009, Chris Morris offered him a role in Four Lions which significantly altered his career trajectory. However, Akhtar’s career didn’t gain momentum right away, and for over a year, he resided in a camper van.
At that point, there was no restriction on parking spots, so he would park his vehicle outside his friends’ homes. When he needed to take a shower, he attended yoga classes to utilize their facilities. It seems likely that his parents were concerned and displeased, but he acknowledges that they had minimal contact and were not close at the time.
Step by step, and then unexpectedly, Akhtar’s luck took a turn for the better. His roles on television in series like The Night Manager with Olivia Colman and films such as Victoria and Abdul with Judi Dench led to that 2017 BAFTA award, marking a significant milestone. “It was an incredibly puzzling sensation,” he reflects now. “I couldn’t help but recognize the effort I had put in, yet it was also a bittersweet moment because it came after years of unrecognized work by others.
Six years on, he bagged another BAFTA, this time for his exceptional role in the initial season of BBC’s Sherwood. At the awards function, he found himself seated behind Meera Syal, who was being honored with a prestigious BAFTA Fellowship. “That moment,” he reflects, “would have been inconceivable to me when I was just a teenage spectator of TV. I was speechless; it surpassed words.
In more recent times, the growing representation of actors from various cultures and the expanded opportunities for character portrayal made it appear as though past struggles had been successfully overcome. However, this illusion was quickly shattered when he recalled his mother shielding him from racist attacks during his childhood. This summer, disturbingly, race-based violence resurfaced on television screens, with mosques and refugee hotels being targeted across the nation. He expressed a feeling of history repeating itself.
After I managed to shake off my melancholy and despair, I pondered over my children and asked myself, “What can I do to shield them from similar situations and empower them to be architects of change?” So, I decided to take them for a stroll to our bustling local market. Many claim that multiculturalism is ineffective, but I counter that it succeeds more often than not. If one believes it doesn’t work, then they’ve essentially won the argument. As my thoughts drifted back to the riots, I found myself reflecting on how these events intertwined with my professional life and the choices I’ve made as an actor. This introspection led me right back to Showtrial, reminding me of what drew me to this captivating series in the first place.
“The stories I am drawn to,” he says, “are a complete rejection of thinking that somebody can objectify you to the point where your own humanity becomes invisible to yourself. Acting can be a vehicle for some kind of change, even if it’s not revolutionary change. There’s a gradual soft power to this work – you enter in a space where everybody feels that they’re seen.”
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Showtrial will return to BBC One and BBC iPlayer on Sunday 6th October.
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2024-09-30 19:04