Faran Tahir

American actor

Faran Haroon Tahir

Tahir in 2016

Born|

Faran Haroon Tahir

Los Angeles, California, U.S.

Education| University of California, Berkeley (BA)
Harvard University (MFA)
Occupation| Actor
Years active| 1989–present
Parent(s)| Naeem Tahir (father)
Yasmeen Tahir (mother)
Relatives| Imtiaz Ali Taj (maternal grandfather)
Hijab Imtiaz Ali (maternal grandmother)
Sayyid Mumtaz Ali (maternal great-grandfather)
Muhammadi Begum (maternal great-grandmother)
Ali Tahir (brother)

Faran Haroon Tahir is an American actor.

Tahir made his film debut as Nathoo in Disney's 1994 film The Jungle Book. He went on to star in a variety of roles, such as Raza in Iron Man (2008), Captain Robau in Star Trek (2009), and President Patel in Elysium (2013). In 2016, he played the title role of Othello in a production by the Shakespeare Theatre Company in Washington, D.C.

## Early life and education

[edit]

Faran Haroon Tahir was born in Los Angeles to Naeem Tahir, a veteran actor and respected writer, and Yasmeen Tahir.[1] Through his mother, "one of the most famous voices of Radio Pakistan", his grandparents are famous writers Imtiaz Ali Taj and Hijab Imtiaz Ali,[2] the first Muslim female pilot.[3] His younger brother Ali Tahir is an actor as well, best known for starring in the comedy-drama sitcom Teen Bata Teen.[4] His other younger brother, Mehran Tahir, is a TV producer, who has worked for Hum TV.[5] Faran Tahir grew up in Pakistan and returned to the United States in 1980.[6]

Tahir studied business economics at the University of California, Berkeley before transitioning to the performing arts, graduating with a degree in theatre.[7] He later graduated with a MFA from the American Repertory Theater's (A.R.T.) Institute for Advanced Theater Training at Harvard University.[8]

## Career

[edit]

Tahir at the 2024 WonderCon

He made his film debut playing Nathoo in the Disney's 1994 live-action version of Rudyard Kipling's The Jungle Book. He has since appeared in such films as Picture Perfect (1997), Anywhere But Here (1999) and Charlie Wilson's War (2007). He also played the male lead in the 1999 independent film ABCD.[9]

In 2008, Tahir played the role of the villain Raza in the Marvel Comics film Iron Man.[10]

He played Starfleet Captain Richard Robau in the 2009 film Star Trek.[11] In 2013, Tahir played President Patel in the science-fiction film Elysium.[12]

Tahir has guest starred on many television series, including Alias, The Practice, Family Law, The Agency, NYPD Blue, Lost, 7th Heaven, The West Wing, Walker, Texas Ranger, The D.A., 24, Monk, Justice, Cold Case, Chuck, Hawaii Five-0[13] and Warehouse 13.[14] He also co-starred with Robert Beltran and Chase Masterson in the 2005 Sci-Fi Channel original movie Manticore.[15] He also starred in the medical drama series Grey's Anatomy as Isaac[16] and appeared on the CW series Supernatural as the Egyptian god Osiris in the seventh season's episode "Defending Your Life".[17] Tahir starred in the ghost horror film Jinn,[18] and in the role of Frank, Cliff Barnes' right-hand man in the revival of Dallas.[19] In 2015 Tahir appeared in a role as the Commander on Supergirl.[20]

He appeared in JAG in the episodes "Ice Queen" and "Meltdown" which served as the two pilot episodes for the series NCIS. Seven years later, Tahir appeared in the spin-off NCIS: Los Angeles.

In 2016 Tahir joined American Crime as Rhys Bashir,[21] and was cast as Captain Nemo on Once Upon a Time.[22] In 2017, Tahir played the role of Mallick in Syfy's TV show, 12 Monkeys.

On his visit to Karachi, Pakistan, he appeared in a web series Speak Your Heart With Samina Peerzada in January 2019.[23]

In June 2024, Faran, along with his Umrao Ayyar co-star Ali Kazmi, appeared in a vlog by PakWheels.

Faran will be seen in the upcoming Pakistani movie Umro Ayyar - A New Beginning, an action thriller movie produced by Azfar Jafri under the banner of VR Chili Production. Umro Ayyar - A New Beginning was expected for release in 2024 worldwide.

## Filmography

[edit]

### Film

[edit]

Year  | Title  | Role  | Notes

|
|
|

1994  | The Jungle Book | Nathoo  |
1997  | Picture Perfect | Sajit  |
1998  | A Price Above Rubies | Hrundi Kapoor  |
Anywhere But Here | Hisham Badir  |
ABCD | Raj  |
2007  | Charlie Wilson's War | Brigadier Rashid  |
2008  | Iron Man | Raza |
2009  | Star Trek | Captain Robau  |
2010  | Ashes | Kartik  |
2013  | Elysium | President Patel  |
Torn | Ali Munsif  |
Escape Plan | Javed Afridi  |
Mr. Jones | The Anthropologist  |
2014  | Jinn | Ali  |
2015  | Flight World War II | William Strong  |
2016  | Honeyglue | Dr. Konig  |
2018  | Mad Genius | Eden  |
2019  | Boris and the Bomb | Sammi  |
2020  | I Am Fear | Asad  |
I'll Meet You There | Majeed  |
2021  | Lamya's Poem | Baha Walad  | Voice role
Injustice | Ra's al Ghul | Voice role
2023  | Coup! | Kaan  |
2024  | Umro Ayyar - A New Beginning | Laqqa  | [24]

### Television

[edit]

Year  | Title  | Role  | Notes

|
|
|

1989  | Midnight Caller | Desk Clerk  | Episode: "Blood Red"
1993  | Law & Order | Mr. Khan  | Episode: "Profile"
1994  | New York Undercover | Dr. Venegas  | Episode: "Missing"
1995  | New York News | Neilson  | Episode: "Past Imperfect"
1997  | Party of Five | Radiologist  | 2 episodes
1999  | The Pretender | Anesthesiologist  | Episode: "At the Hour of Our Death"
2000  | The Practice | Dr. Michael Shields  | Episode: "Death Penalties"
FreakyLinks | Doctor  | Episode: "Subject: Three Thirteen"
Family Law | Dr. Singh  | 2 episodes
2001  | Alias | Mokhtar  | Episode: "A Broken Heart"
NYPD Blue | Isa Al-Ramai  | Episode: "Baby Love"
2001–2003  | The Agency | Jamar Akil / India's Secret Police Leader  | 2 episodes
2002  | 7th Heaven | Mr. Halawi  | Episode: "Suspicion"
MDs | Dr. Banfa  | Episode: "Cruel and Unusual"
A Town Without Pity | Antoine Fahd  | TV movie
2002–2003  | The West Wing | Manny  | 2 episodes
2003  | The Agency | Jamar Akil  | Episode: "An Isolated Incident"
JAG | Amad Bin Atwa / Said Labdouni  | 3 episodes
Boston Public | Mr. Mubarik  | Episode: "Chapter Seventy-Four"
2003–2005  | 24 | Mosque Greeter / Tomas Sherek  | 3 episodes
2004  | Judging Amy | Dr. Omidi  | Episode: "The Quick and The Dead"
The D.A. | Asaf Shah  | Episode: "The People vs. Achmed Abbas"
2005  | Over There | Hamza  | Episode: "Embedded"
Just Legal | Unknown  | Episode: "Pilot"
Manticore | Umari  | TV movie
2006  | Charmed | Savard  | Episode: "Repo Manor"
Monk | Museum Official  | Episode: "Mr. Monk and the Big Reward"
Justice | Oscar Rivera  | Episode: "Behind the Orange Curtain"
Sleeper Cell | Aziz  | Episode: "Faith"
2007  | Cold Case | Anil Patel  | Episode: "A Dollar, A Dream"
2008  | Lost | Ishmael Bakir  | Episode: "The Shape of Things to Come"
Chuck | Farrokh Bulsara  | Episode: "Chuck Versus Tom Sawyer"
2009  | Grey's Anatomy | Isaac  | Episode: "Give Peace a Chance"
2010  | NCIS: Los Angeles | Hassad Al-Jahiri  | Episode: "Fame"
Childrens Hospital | Malik  | Episode: "The Sultan's Finger: Live"
2010–2013  | Warehouse 13 | Adwin Kosan  | 11 episodes
2011  | Blue Bloods | El Haq  | Episode: "Hall of Mirrors"
In Plain Sight | Ali Tavali  | Episode: "A Womb with a View"
Supernatural | Osiris  | Episode: "Defending Your Life"
2012  | Burn Notice | Ahmad Damour  | Episode: "Last Rites"
2012–2013  | Dallas | Frank 'Smiling Frank'  | 8 episodes
2013  | Private Practice | Charles  | Episode: "Full Release"
2014  | Elementary | Agent Mattoo  | Episode: "The Diabolical Kind"
Crisis | Tariq Rind  | Episode: "If You Are Watching This I Am Dead"
2014–2015  | Criminal Minds | Tivon Askari  | 2 episodes
2015  | The Blacklist | Ruslan Denisov  | Episode: "Ruslan Denisov (No. 67)"
Supergirl | The Commander  | Episode: "Pilot"
How to Get Away with Murder | Terrence Amos  | Episode: "Hello Raskolnikov"
Satisfaction | Omar Sandhal  | Recurring role in season 2
2016  | American Crime | Rhys Bashir  | 6 episodes
Hawaii Five-0 | 'Lucky' Morad  | Episode: "No ke ali'i wahine a me ka 'aina"
2016–2017  | Once Upon a Time | Captain Nemo | 3 episodes
2017  | Prison Break: Resurrection | Jamil  | Season 5
Scandal | President Rashad  | Season 7
Shameless | Adeeb Singh  | Episode: "Where's My Meth?"
2017–2018  | 12 Monkeys | Mallick  | 7 episodes
2018  | The Magicians | The Great Cock of the Darkling Woods  | Episode: "The Tales of the Seven Keys"
Madam Secretary | President Tarindo Nandasiri  | Episode: "Reading the Signs"
2019  | MacGyver | The Fence  | Episode: "Fence + Suitcase + Americium-241"
FBI | Ravi Sharma  | Episode: "Undisclosed"
2022  | Mira, Royal Detective | Sher (voice)  | Episode: "Mira's Musical Mystery Tour/The Case of the Mystery Mehfil"
The Old Man | Rahmani  | 3 episodes
2026  | Vision Quest | Raza | Post-production

### Video games

[edit]

Year  | Title  | Role  | Notes

|
|
|

2015  | Call of Duty: Black Ops III | General Abasi Hakim  | Face and Motion Capture
2023  | Dead Space | Challus Mercer  |

### Stage

[edit]

Year  | Title  | Role  | Notes

|
|
|

2016  | Othello | Othello |
2019  | Bhai Bhai | Buddy  | [25]

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "Ali Tahir opens up on being part of an illustrious family". The Express Tribune. January 11, 2020. Retrieved September 8, 2021.
2. ^ "Ali Tahir opens up on being part of an illustrious family". The Express Tribune. January 11, 2020. Retrieved September 8, 2021.
3. ^ Shahjahan Khurram (13 April 2015), "World’s first ever Muslim female pilot – Hijab Imtiaz Ali", AryNews. Retrieved 13 July 2018.
4. ^ Haroon Ashraf (7 December 2015), "Hijab Imtiaz Ali: The Queen of Urdu Romanticism", Dawn News. Retrieved 3 July 2018.
5. ^ "Taj Tahir Foundation - about us". Archived from the original on July 4, 2018. Retrieved July 3, 2018.
6. ^ Amna Niazi (May 12, 2015). "Faran Tahir". SiddySays.com. Retrieved April 30, 2016.
7. ^ "After fighting Iron Man, Faran Tahir arrives in Karachi". The Express Tribune. January 7, 2013. Retrieved April 30, 2016.
8. ^ Appelo, Tim (May 30, 2013). "The Top 25 Drama Schools in the World". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved August 23, 2021.
9. ^ Holden, Stephen (November 30, 2001). "FILM IN REVIEW; 'ABCD'". The New York Times. Retrieved November 3, 2024.
10. ^ "Actor Faran Tahir on "Iron Man" and "Star Trek"". cbr.com. June 4, 2008. Retrieved September 26, 2016.
11. ^ "Faran Tahir breaks barriers as a new starship captain in Star Trek". blastr.com. December 14, 2012. Archived from the original on September 27, 2016. Retrieved September 26, 2016.
12. ^ "Interview with Elysium's Faran Tahir". denofgeek.com. August 9, 2013. Retrieved September 26, 2016.
13. ^ "Hawaii Five-0 next for Faran Tahir". hipinpakistan.com. July 12, 2016. Archived from the original on September 22, 2017. Retrieved September 26, 2016.
14. ^ "Exclusive: 'Star Trek' captain invades 'Warehouse 13'". ew.com. Archived from the original on February 20, 2022. Retrieved September 26, 2016.
15. ^ "Original Movie Manticore Debuts on SCI FI Nov. 26". awn.com. Retrieved September 26, 2016.
16. ^ "Faran Tahir Does a Guest Appearance on Grey's Anatomy". www.koolmuzone.pk. November 13, 2009. Retrieved September 26, 2016.
17. ^ "Western Audiences Get Taste of 'Jinn'". May 8, 2010.
18. ^ "Western Audiences Get Taste of 'Jinn'". February 25, 2015.
19. ^ "Q&A with Hollywood Actor, Faran Tahir for DALLAS (New Series) | Upodcasting- Under Promise Over Deliver". upodcasting.com. September 3, 2012. Retrieved September 26, 2016.
20. ^ "Supergirl To Square Off Against Iron Man and Star Trek Actor Faran Tahir". Comicbook.com. Retrieved September 26, 2016.
21. ^ Petski, Denise (July 24, 2015). "Faran Tahir Joins ABC's 'American Crime'; Holly Curran In Amazon Pilot 'Zelda'". deadline.com. Retrieved September 26, 2016.
22. ^ "'Once Upon a Time' casts Captain Nemo — exclusive". ew.com. Retrieved September 26, 2016.
23. ^ Speak Your Heart with Samina Peerzada, Faran Tahir | The Star Who Made Us Proud | Speak Your Heart With Samina Peerzada | Promo, retrieved January 31, 2019
24. ^ "Umro Ayyar - A New Beginning". IMDb.
25. ^ NewsBytes. "Stage play Bhai Bhai to feature Pak-American actor Faran Tahir". The News International. Retrieved January 31, 2019.

## External links

[edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Faran Tahir.

* Faran Tahir at IMDb

Authority control databases

International|

* ISNI
* VIAF
* WorldCat

National|

* United States

Other|

* Yale LUX