Meera Syal
Book
Background: Meera Syal is a British-born actress and writer of Indian parents who left New Delhi for the industrial heartland of the Black Country, where she grew up.
Writing: Credits include: screenplays for the films Anita and Me (Starfield Productions, Icon Distribution UK 2002), the award-winning comedy Bhaji On the Beach, A Nice Arrangement (Channel 4), My Sister-Wife (Screen 2); television writing includes: three series of Goodness Gracious Me (BBC 2), Watching the Detectives (Carlton), The Real McCoy (BBC 2), Black Silk (BBC 1); two novels Anita and Me (HarperCollins/New Press, New York), Life Isn’t All Ha Ha Hee Hee published in 1999.
Theatre: The Vagina Monologues (The Old Vic, Ambassadors Theatre, Madison Square Gardens, New York); Mrs Candour in The School For Scandal (Bristol Old Vic); Anitra in Peer Gynt, (Royal National Theatre); Jacinta Condor in Caryl Churchill’s Serious Money (Royal Court, Wyndham’s Theatre, Public Theater, New York).
Television: Most recently played Rupinder in the sitcom All About Me (BBC) and naughty granny Ummi in The Kumars At No. 42 (BBC 2); Judith in Guy Jenkinson’s Emmy award-winning Crossing the Floor (BBC 1); Ruby in Andy Hamilton’s Bedtime (BBC 1); as a writer/performer, Farah in My Sister-Wife, (Screen 2 and Kamla in Watching the Detectives (Carlton) and three series of Goodness Gracious Me (BBC 2).
Film: Credits include Auntie Shaila in Anita and Me; Judith Adams in Forgive and Forget; Sushila in It’s Not Unusual; Miss Chauhan in Jonathan Harvey’s Beautiful Thing; Rani in Stephen Frears’ Sammi and Rosie Get Laid.
Awards: Several major awards including: a British Comedy award, RTS award, (both for Goodness Gracious Me), a BAFTA for the film short, It’s Not Unusual; an MBE for Services to the Arts in 1997; the 2001 RIMA and EMMA Media Personality of the Year and the Asian Women of Achievement Chairman’s award 2001. Meera Syal’s first novel Anita and Me (HarperCollins/New Press, New York), took the Betty Trask award and was short-listed for The Guardian Fiction Prize and has, to date, sold over 150,000 copies. The film of the book will be out later this year.
Forthcoming Projects: Meera Syal is adapting, with Abi Morgan, her second novel, Life Isn’t All Ha Ha Hee Hee (Transworld) for a television series in conjunction with BBC2 and Hat Trick Productions.
