Skip to content 
Search

Latest Stories

Kiran Sonia Sawar: ‘There should be a more equal platform’ in theatre

Inclusion and diversity on and off stage a long way away, says sawar

Kiran Sonia Sawar: ‘There should be a more equal platform’ in theatre

AFTER seven years away starring in TV shows Black Mirror, Silent Witness and

The Nevers, actress Kiran Sonia Sawar returns to the stage to take a leading role in the play Brilliant Jerks.


From the writer of the acclaimed HBO/BBC series Industry, Joseph Charlton, Brilliant Jerks is centred on the creation of a multi-billion-dollar car-hailing app.

Inspired by Charlton’s time as a journalist covering Uber, audiences are taken behind the scenes of the big ideas that shape modern society, showing how tech giants inadvertently alter consumer behaviour as well as the dangers of ignoring the responsibility which comes with power.

“It’s a comment on the capitalist world we live in and how different people from different parts of that world have to manoeuvre themselves around a system to get what they need,” Sawar told Eastern Eye.

Sawar stars alongside Sean Delaney (Killing Eve), and Shubham Sharaf (Shantaram,

The Father and the Assassin).

All three actors play multiple roles alongside their main role – Sharaf portrays the app’s founder Tyler, Delaney is app coder Sean and Sawar’s character is Mia, a woman trying to battle the misogynistic work culture at the app’s offices.

“The play is three separate stories, about three different people from varied socio-economic backgrounds,” said Sawar.

“What I loved about it was it’s an actor’s dream - a proper actor’s play where we are doing multiple roles. We’re all playing four or five different characters, doing a variety of accents and having to be very specific with our body and voices.

“It’s just been a great segue into delving straight into a play in its rawest form, without all the tech and lights and big stages. It’s just really about three actors in one space,” she added. Sawar also plays a driver earning her living by picking up passengers booking through the app.

INSET 1a Brilliant Jerks at Southwark Playhouse © Nick Rutter @nickrutterarts 5 Sean Delaney (right) and Shubham Sharaf in Brilliant Jerks (Pic: Nick Rutter)

Charlton spoke of his delight at having such a “stellar” cast, describing them as “incredible actors”.

He added: “I’m astonished and colossally excited by the three actors we’ve assembled for Brilliant Jerks. I’ve followed Kiran, Sean, and Shubham for a few years and all three are incredible actors.

“The play is a mixture of direct address and vigorous multi-rolling throughout; and calls for a trio of supple, intelligent, and commanding actors.

“All three are special talents and I can’t wait to see them bring the play to life.”

Sawar said it’s a sign of progress that two Asian actors, in herself and Sharaf, perform parts not written as Asian characters. However, there is a long way to go when it comes to diversity and inclusion in theatre, she said.

LEAD Kiran Sonia Sawar 1c GettyImages 950073954 Kiran Sonia Sawar (Photo by Jeff Spicer/Getty Images)

Asked if there are more opportunities now for actors of Asian heritage in theatre, Sawar said, “Not really, if I’m honest.

“I think in terms of this play, it’s amazing because me and Shubham, these parts could be played by anybody. They’re not ethnicity specific which is what was amazing about the show in the first place.

“It’s nice to be in an Asian majority cast that’s not taking place in India or talking about terrorism. It’s amazing and I wish there was more of it.”

She added: “There are a lot of gatekeepers in the theatre world. It feels like quite a close-knit community I don’t particularly feel I’m a part of.

“There should be a more equal platform.

I feel very, very awkward when I’m in a theatre building and in a theatre space, even when just watching a play. I don’t know what that says.”

Though Sawar spoke of her pride to be playing a non-Asian role, she said she still is keen to also play Asian characters that can shine a light on issues affecting the community.

The 32-year-old’s breakthrough role was in 2016 when she played a victim of honour-based violence in the gripping BBC series Murdered By My Father.

“It was really, really hard work,” she said.

“It was only the second thing I’d ever filmed and it was very challenging. I was still learning and the subject matter was horrendous.

“I found it difficult as I hadn’t learned to distance myself from what I was doing.

“I remember it being a story that I really wanted to tell. I was completely invested in the stories and case studies I was reading and the documentaries I watched – all the stories of young girls. I just was not able to shake it off at the end of the day. It’s a shame that it’s still so relevant in society now. But all we can do is really ally ourselves with the stories we think are important in a world, especially as Asian actors.”

She added: “You get pigeonholed in certain brackets, but this was a bracket I was very much happy to speak about, something in our lifetime that should be able to be fixed.

“Forced marriages and honour killings are just not something that should be a narrative for any young people living next door to us in the UK and around the world,” she said.

Sawar will next be seen the channel 4 production True Love which comes from the team behind BAFTA award-winning series The End Of The F***ing World and has a cast including Lindsay Duncan (Rome, Sherlock), Clarke Peters (The Wire, Da 5 Bloods) and Sue Johnston (Downton Abbey, The Good Karma Hospital). And then she will be seen on the big screen opposite action star Jason Statham in Meg 2: The Trench.

“It was a cool experience. Action movies are a different beast, for sure. “But it was a really wonderful experience, very physically demanding and very different to my previous work.”

Talking about working with Statham, she said: “He’s so versed in the action genre. It’s interesting to watch someone like that, to learn from them. And that’s what I like to do, watch people and just learn. It’s the same as watching Sue Johnston or Clarke Peters. You watch them and you just go ‘wow, they’re amazing’.

More For You

Brothers deny assaulting police during Manchester Airport brawl

Photo for representation. (iStock)

Brothers deny assaulting police during Manchester Airport brawl

TWO brothers accused of assaulting a man inside a Starbucks and later attacking police officers at Manchester Airport are standing trial, with the prosecution arguing they used "unlawful and extreme violence".

Mohammed Fahir Amaaz, 20, and his older brother Muhammad Amaad, 26, both from Rochdale, are said to have acted aggressively on July 23 last year while at the airport to pick up their mother, who had arrived on a flight from Qatar.

Keep ReadingShow less
Court to review teen's sentence in Bhim Kohli case
Bhim Kohli

Court to review teen's sentence in Bhim Kohli case

THE seven-year prison sentence handed to a 15-year-old boy convicted of the manslaughter of 80-year-old Bhim Sen Kohli is to be reviewed under the UK’s Unduly Lenient Sentence (ULS) scheme.

The Attorney General’s Office confirmed on Friday (5) that the teenager’s sentence will now be considered by the Court of Appeal.

Keep ReadingShow less
Dalai Lama hopes to live 'beyond 130 years'

Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama attends a prayer meet held for his long life at the Dalai Lama temple in the northern hill town of Dharamshala, India, July 5, 2025. REUTERS/Anushree Fadnavis

Dalai Lama hopes to live 'beyond 130 years'

THE Dalai Lama said on Saturday (5) he hopes to live until he is more than 130 years old, two decades longer than his previous prediction, following his assurance to followers that he would reincarnate as the spiritual head of the faith upon his death.

The Nobel Peace Prize winner was speaking during a ceremony organised by his followers to offer prayers for his long life, ahead of his 90th birthday on Sunday (6), and as China insists it will choose his successor. The Dalai Lama told Reuters in December he might live to 110.

Keep ReadingShow less
UK heatwave by mid-July

Daytime temperatures meeting or exceeding set thresholds of 25°C

iStock

Met Office warns of potential third UK heatwave by mid-July

Key points

  • Met Office forecasts rising temperatures by mid-July
  • Possible third heatwave after record-breaking June
  • High pressure system likely to bring hot air from the Atlantic
  • Yellow rain warning and flood alerts issued in parts of Scotland and Cumbria

Possible heatwave to return by mid-July

The UK could experience its third heatwave in a month by mid-July, the Met Office has said. Forecasters expect rising heat and humidity during the second weekend of July, following two weekends of unusually warm weather in late June.

June was officially the hottest on record in England, and the return of high temperatures could mean another heatwave for parts of the country. However, the Met Office cautioned that it is too early to confirm how hot conditions will get.

Keep ReadingShow less
crypto

Two men have been jailed for defrauding investors of £1.5 million through a fake crypto investment scheme. (Representational image: iStock)

iStock

Two jailed over £1.5m crypto investment scam

TWO people who duped investors of £1.5 million by selling fake investments in crypto have been jailed for 12 years, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) said.

Raymondip Bedi, of Bromley, and Patrick Mavanga, of Peckham, conned at least 65 people by cold-calling them between February 2017 and June 2019. They operated companies including CCX Capital and Astaria Group LLP.

Keep ReadingShow less