List of British Asian people

This is a list of British Asian people, namely people in the United Kingdom whose ethnic origin lies in South Asia (for the purposes of the list including Burma). Those with an East Asian ("Oriental") background are not listed; in British English, "Asian" tends to refer to the South (Indian subcontinent) rather than the East of the continent.

Business and industry

*Waheed Alli, co-Founder Planet 24.
*Vikrant Bhargava, co-founder PartyGaming
*Karan Bilimoria, Founder Cobra Beer.
*Dinesh Dhamija, Founder Ebookers
*Anurag Dikshit, co-founder PartyGaming
*Hinduja brothers.
*Firoz Kassam, former owner of Oxford United F.C.
*Gulu Lalvani, Founder Binatone.
*Avtar Lit, Founder Sunrise Radio.
*Lakshmi Mittal, steel magnate.
*Tahir Mohsan, founder Time Computers.
*Sir Anwar Pervez, Founder Bestway Group
*Arun Sarin, Chief Executive Vodafone.
*Tom Singh, Founder New Look
*Gulam Noon, Businessman
*Paul Sagoo, Businessman
*Syed Barique Mahmood, Founder & Chief Executive SBM Group

Disability

*Ivan and Charika Corea, Founders Autism Awareness Campaign UK

Entertainment

*Naveen Andrews, actor.
*Mina Anwar, actor.
*Sanjeev Bhaskar, comedian and actor.
*Gurinder Chadha, movie director.
*Ameet Chana, actor.
*Kulvinder Ghir, actor.
*Shobna Gulati, actor.
*Kazi Tansen, TV presenter.
*Konnie Huq, television presenter.
*Waris Hussein, film and television director.
*Indira Joshi, actor.
*Rani Khanijau, television presenter.
*Ben Kingsley, actor - born Krishna Bhanji, father - from Zanzibar of a Gujarati family, mother European Jewish.
*Annabella Lwin, singer.
*Art Malik, actor
*Ismail Merchant, James Ivory's producer.
*Freddie Mercury (real name Farrokh Bulsara), singer, member of rock band Queen
*Rhona Mitra (1976 - ) actress and model; father from Calcutta ^{[http://www.cubeit.com/ctimes/news0077i.htm]}
*Shazia Mirza, comedian.
*Suleman Mirza, lead dancer of "Signature"; runner-up on "Britain's Got Talent" 2008.
*Jimi Mistry, actor.
*Parminder Nagra, actor.
*Simon Nagra, actor.
*DJ Nihal, Radio DJ
*Bobby Friction, Radio DJ.
*Archie Panjabi, actor.
*Ray Panthaki, actor.
*Laila Rouass, actor.
*Sunetra Sarker, actor.
*Pooja Shah, actor.
*Madhu Singh, dancer; member of "Signature"; runner-up on "Britain's Got Talent" 2008.
*Meera Syal, author, comedian and actor.
*Indira Varma, actor.
*Nina Wadia, actor.
*Vikram Dodd, criminal correspondent in The Guardian

Journalism and media

*Sameera Ahmed, Television Journalist.
*George Alagiah, Television journalist.
*Jay Singh-Sohal, Television Journalist.
*Fareena Alam, Editor Q-News.
*Yasmin Alibhai-Brown, Columnist.
*Martin Bashir, Broadcaster
*Reeta Chakrabarti, BBC politial correspondent
*Reena Combo, Journalist and actress.
*Sonia Deol, Presenter and Reporter.
*Sonia Dutta, Broadcaster and Newsreader
*Krishnan Guru-Murthy, Television journalist.
*Sunny Hundal, a journalist and a political blogger.
*Faisal Islam, Television Journalist.
*Saira Khan, Presenter.
*Manish Sahi, Broadcaster
*Adil Ray, Presenter and reporter.
*Anita Rani, Presenter and reporter.
*Hardeep Singh Kohli, Writer, presenter and reporter.
*Martin Bashir, Television journalist
*Ayan Panja, Doctor, writer and broadcaster.
*Shihab Rattansi,Journalist and Presenter.
*Vinay SharmaBroadcaster and Journalist

Literature & Art

*Monica Ali, author - Bengali father and English mother.
*Gurpreet Kaur Bhatti, playwright.
*Yasmin Alibhai-Brown, author and columnist.
*Nirpal Singh Dhaliwal, author.
*Kia Abdullah, author.
*Gurj Sohal, poet, artist, speculator .
*Govinder Nazran, artist.
*Tariq Ali, author
*Hanif Kureishi, author.
* Abdul Ahad - Author, astronomer [First Ark to Alpha Centauri [http://www.publishedauthors.net/aa_spaceagent/news.html] ]
*Hari Kunzru, author.
*Krishnan, C R, short story writer/ film maker -Frogs Under the Wheels
*Raman Mundair, poet, writer and playwright, author of "Lovers, Liars, Conjurers and Thieves", "A Choreographer's Cartography" and "The Algebra of Freedom"
*V.S. Naipaul, author (from Indian community in Trinidad).
*Salman Rushdie, author.
*Vikram Seth, author.
*Simon Singh, author of scientific and mathematical interest.
*Meera Syal, author of Anita & Me and a few other books as well, also an actress, comedian and director.
* Adil Ray
* Bali Rai, Young adult fiction writer from Leicester [ [http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/arts/openbook/openbook_20060618.shtml Open Book] , BBC Radio 4]

Music

**1960 to present
*Nimal Mendis, singer/songwriter - born in Sri Lanka.

**1970-80's
*Freddie Mercury singer of Queen is the most successful British Asian musician to date.Born Farrokh Bulsara in Zanzibar to an Indian Parsee family, educated in India and England.
*Boy Chana Born in 1971 in Uganda East Africa to Punjabi parents. He is one of the first journalists to profle Bhangra music from the 80's with regular columns in Eastern Eye newspaper (1987-1998) and how work in community radio in Birmingham. His exhibition profiles Bhangra history www.sohoroadtothepunjab.org.uk
**1990 to present
*Jas Mann from Babylon Zoo known for the number one UK single Spaceman (song) which featured on a Levi's TV commercial in 1995.
*Tjinder Singh, singer/guitarist of Cornershop known for the UK number one "Brimful of Asha" in 1998.
*Sonya Madan, singer of BritPop act Echobelly who scored numerous Top 40 hits in the UK during the '90s.
*Talvin Singh, Mercury award-winning Dance Musician.
*Nitin Sawhney, Dance Musician.
*Asian Dub Foundation underground rock band.
*Swami, Alt/Hip-Hop/Electro Band
*DJ Swami, music producer, DJ, songwriter and remixer, creative force behind the band Swami.
*S-Endz, musician, performer and vocalist of Swami.
*Jay Sean, singer
*Juggy D, Bhangra Singer and producer
*Kazi Tansen, Singer and TV presenter.
*Sudha Kheterpal, percussionist, known for playing with Faithless and touring with The Return of the Spice Girls

**2000 to present
*Som Wardner singer songwriter in alternative rock band My Vitriol.
*Natasha Khan singer songwriter in Mercury award-nominated Bat For Lashes.
*Bally Sagoo, DJ and Music Producer.
*M.I.A. aka Maya Arulpragasam, Mercury award-nominated singer.
*Raghav pop singer from Canada but scored hits in the UK.
*Bobby Friction and Nihal, Radio one & Asian Network radio presenters [and individually documentary presenters/writers/producers]
*Rajinder Rai, aka Panjabi MC, dance musician
*Rishi Rich, Bhangra MusicianSingerComposerLyricist
*Archis Tiku, Co-founder and bass player in Maximo Park
*Jules Faife, World music guitarist based in London
*Tristan Brown, Classical Pianist based in London

Politics

*Mancherjee Bhownagree, Conservative (Second Indian MP in British Parliament).
*Parmjit Dhanda, Labour MP.
*Navnit, Lord Dholakia, Liberal Democrat Peer.
*Nirj Deva, Conservative MEP.
*Parmjit Singh Gill, Former Liberal Democrat MP.
*Syed Kamall, Conservative MEP
*Piara Khabra, Labour MP.
*Sadiq Khan, Labour MP.
*Ashok Kumar, Labour MP.
*Khalid Mahmood, Labour MP.
*Shahid Malik, Labour MP.
*Claude Moraes, Labour MEP.
*Dadabhai Naoroji, Liberal Party (First Indian MP in British Parliament).
*Chai Patel
*Priti Patel, Conservative Party (former Press Secretary of William Hague's Press Office, Member of the A List and PPC for Nottingham North in 2005 General Election and Conservative PPC for Witham at the Next United Kingdom general election).
*Lord Swaraj Paul
*Shapurji Saklatvala, Communist MP.
*Mohammad Sarwar, Labour MP.
*Marsha Singh, Labour MP.
*Shailesh Vara, Conservative MP.
*Keith Vaz, Labour MP.
*Salma Yaqoob, Respect Party Vice Chair, Birmingham City

port

First flag indicates country of origin.Second flag indicates country representing.

*flagicon|Pakistan flagicon|England Usman Afzaal, cricketer.
*flagicon|Pakistan flagicon|England Adnan Ahmed, footballer.
*flagicon|Pakistan flagicon|England Kabir Ali, cricketer.
*flagicon|Pakistan flagicon|England Kadeer Ali, cricketer.
*flagicon|Pakistan flagicon|England Moeen Ali, cricketer.
*flagicon|India flagicon|England Ravinder Bopara, cricketer.
*flagicon|India flagicon|England Michael Chopra, footballer.
*flagicon|India flagicon|England Nayan Doshi, cricketer.
*flagicon|Pakistan flagicon|Scotland Rana Majid Haq, cricketer.
*flagicon|India flagicon|England Nasser Hussain, cricketer.
*flagicon|Pakistan flagicon|Scotland Rana Omer Hussain, cricketer.
*flagicon|India flagicon|England Ronnie Irani, cricketer.
*flagicon|Pakistan flagicon|England Amir Khan, boxer.
*flagicon|Pakistan flagicon|England Haroon Khan, boxer .
*flagicon|Pakistan flagicon|England Adam Langley-Khan, A1 Grand Prix driver.
*flagicon|Pakistan flagicon|England Sajid Mahmood, cricketer.
*flagicon|Sri Lanka flagicon|England Dimitri Mascarenhas, cricketer.
*flagicon|India flagicon|England Monty Panesar, cricketer.
*flagicon|India flagicon|England Min Patel, cricketer.
*flagicon|India flagicon|England Samit Patel, cricketer.
*flagicon|India flagicon|England Mark Ramprakash, cricketer.
*flagicon|Pakistan flagicon|England Adil Rashid, cricketer.
*flagicon|Pakistan flagicon|England Zesh Rehman, footballer.
*flagicon|Pakistan flagicon|England Bilal Shafayat, cricketer.
*flagicon|Pakistan flagicon|England Owais Shah, cricketer.
*flagicon|India flagicon|England Harpal Singh, footballer.
*flagicon|India flagicon|England Vikram Solanki, cricketer.
*flagicon|Bangladesh flagicon|England Anwar Uddin, footballer

Other

Flag indicates country of origin.

*flagicon|India Maharaja Duleep Singh, Prince of Perthshire
*flagicon|India George Edalji, barrister falsely accused of horse killing, defended by Arthur Conan Doyle.
*flagicon|Sri Lanka Merle Oberon, British actress of mixed British, Sinhalese, and Irish descent.
*flagicon|India Buck Ruxton, 1930's murder, born a Parsi.
*flagicon|India Saira Shah, journalist, daughter of Idries Shah and a half Parsi woman.
*flagicon|India Shami Chakrabarti, Human rights activist and Director of civil rights organization Liberty.
*flagicon|Pakistan Michael Nazir-Ali, Bishop of Rochester

References