WHEN Riz Ahmed's latest short film, Dammi, released on the streaming platform Mubi last July, it exemplified everything the British Pakistani actor believes about his craft.
“Doing a short film is a purer experience,” Ahmed told The Guardian. “You’re not doing it for the money, you’re not doing it for the clout, you’re just doing something because you are interested in it and you want to explore it. Ironically, it’s the things that you do just for yourself … that can end up resonating with people more.”
The 16-minute piece, directed by Yann Demange, carries an extraordinary weight of authenticity. Demange, who grew up in foster care wrestling with his Algerian-Muslim identity, poured his own vulnerabilities into the film.
Dammi tells the story of Mounir, a man estranged from his father, who finds solace in Hafiza (Souhelia Yacoub), a French Algerian woman of Persian descent. Adding a deeply personal layer to the narrative, Demange cast his real father, Yousfi Henine, in the role of Mounir’s father.
“Yann made himself vulnerable by telling such a personal story,” Ahmed told India’s The Hindu newspaper. “In the film, I play Yann, and Yann’s father is played by his actual father. They’ve not been in touch for a long time, so making this film was one of the first times they spent so much time together.”
Rather than mimicking Demange, Ahmed chose to capture his essence. “I didn’t think about impersonating Yann. I know the soul of this piece is from Yann’s soul. I know him well, so I just tried to find the truth moment to moment with the other actors,” he explained.
This approach results in powerful, emotionally charged scenes, particularly between Ahmed and Yacoub, whose on-screen chemistry deepens the film’s exploration of identity and estrangement.
Born in Wembley, London, in December 1982, Ahmed’s journey to Hollywood stardom began in unexpected places. Speaking only Urdu until age six, he earned a scholarship to the prestigious Merchant Taylors’ School at 11. There, his teachers noticed something special in the young debater and actor.
This foundation led him to Oxford, where he studied philosophy, politics and economics, before honing his craft with a master's in classical acting from London's Central School of Speech and Drama.
The turning point in Ahmed's career came from an unlikely source: a conversation with Idris Elba. By 2013, despite acclaimed performances in independent films like The Road to Guantanamo (2006) and Four Lions (2010), Ahmed felt his opportunities in the UK were dwindling. Elba's advice led him to Hollywood, despite scepticism about roles for British South Asian actors.
What followed was a masterclass in breaking barriers. His breakthrough role as Rick in Nightcrawler (2014) showcased his ability to hold his own against Jake Gyllenhaal.
By 2016, he had conquered both blockbusters (Rogue One: A Star Wars Story) and prestige television (HBO's The Night Of, based on the first series of the 2008 BBC drama Criminal Justice). The latter earned him an Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited Series – making him the first Muslim and South Asian actor to win in the category.
But it was Sound of Metal (2019) that truly revealed Ahmed's dedication to his craft. For eight months, he immersed himself in drumming and sign language to portray Ruben, a heavy metal drummer losing his hearing. The role earned him an Oscar nomination, another first for a Muslim actor in the Best Actor category.
In 2022, Ahmed's creative vision culminated in an Oscar win for The Long Goodbye, a short film that grew from his concept album reimagining Britain's post-Brexit relationship with its South Asian diaspora as a toxic love affair, with the film featuring a British Asian family brutalised by neo-Nazi paramilitaries.
His acceptance speech captured his mission: “In such divided times, we believe that the role of story is to remind us there is no ‘us’ and ‘them’. There’s just ‘us’. This is for everyone who feels like they don't belong. You're not alone. We'll meet you there. That's where the future is.”
Ahmed’s influence extends beyond performance. Under his alias Riz MC, he creates music that challenges societal narratives about identity and immigration. His production company, Left Handed Films, co-published The Blueprint for Muslim Inclusion, a groundbreaking study on Muslim representation in major films.
His 2017 House of Commons speech on diversity inspired The Riz Test, which has gained significant traction as a widely recognised tool for assessing Muslim representation in film and television.
In 2024, Ahmed continued pushing boundaries. He starred in Relay, a David Mackenzie-directed thriller, playing Ash, a fixer helping whistleblowers navigate dangerous situations. He joined Wes Anderson’s The Phoenician Scheme, alongside Bill Murray and Benicio del Toro, and film is set for release in May 2025.
He also co-created and starred in Quarter Life, an Amazon Prime Video comedy about a London actor's existential crisis, set for release later this year.
“There’s less of a unifying logic to my choices other than what allows me to explore and pushes me out of my comfort zone. If something makes me feel unsure or a bit scared, that’s what attracts me,” he has said.
This philosophy extends to his work in animation, including the Oscar-nominated Flee (2021) and Nimona (2023).
“Some of the best stories have something to say about the world and challenge us to see things differently,” he observed. “All storytelling is political because it’s a way of looking at the world. Even stories we don’t consider political are making decisions about what they don’t say. The role of the artist is to challenge us, expand us and stretch our hearts and minds to see the world a bit differently.”
Ahmed’s marriage to American author Fatima Farheen Mirza, whose debut novel A Place for Us became a New York Times bestseller, adds another dimension to his narrative of bridge-
building between cultures. Together, they represent a new generation of artists reshaping cultural conversations.
