- Name: Dev Patel
- Date of Birth: April 23, 1990
- Place of Birth: Harrow, London, England, UK
Mini-bio:
British actor Dev Patel began showing signs of his talent as a performer at a young age, earning praise for his work in school plays when he was still in primary school. Born to Indian parents, Patel ... read more
Dev Patel Wiki Profile
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| Dev Patel was born in Brent, Greater London, England, to Hindu Gujarati Indian parents, both of whom were born in Nairobi Kenya. His mother Anita Patel is a carer and his father Raj Patel an IT consultant. Dev Patel, who grew up in Harrow, attended Longfield Primary School and later went to Whitmore High School, receiving an A* in GCSE Drama, for his "self-penned portrayal of a child in the Beslan School siege". His drama teacher Niamh Wright has stated: "Dev was a gifted student who quickly impressed me with his innate ability to communicate a wide variety of characters imaginatively and creatively. [...] He was awarded full marks for his GCSE performance to a live audience and the visiting examiner was moved to tears by his honest portrayal of a child in the Beslan school hostage crisis in Russia. He eventually completed his AS levels in 2007, while he was working in Skins. Patel began his acting career in late 2006, when he auditioned for the E4 TV teen drama series Skins After two auditions, he was cast in the role of Anwar Kharral a British Pakistani Muslim teenager. According to fellow actors Mike Bailey (who played Sid Jenkens and Hannah Murray (who played Cassie Ainsworth), the characterization of Anwar was partly based on the personality of Patel and the role was written specifically for him after he was cast in Skins. The first series of the show aired in early 2007 and went on to receive two nominations at the BAFTA Television Awards. Patel resumed his role as Anwar for the second series of Skins, which aired in early 2008. In August 2007, Patel was cast in the role of Jamal Malik, the central character in  Danny Boyle's independent film Slumdog Millionaire.Patel, who appeared on The Today Show with co-star Freida Pinto on 11 November 2008, stated he was chosen for the role of Jamal due to his "average Joe" appearance. He also stated that it was Boyle's daughter, a fan of Skins, who initially recommended Patel for the role. The character Jamal Malik, the protagonist, is an Indian Muslim boy born and raised in the poverty of Mumbai , India. Boyle considered hundreds of young male actors, although he found that Bollywood leads were generally "strong, handsome hero-types", not the personality he was looking for. Boyle's 17-year-old daughter Caitlin pointed him to the British television ensemble drama Skins, of which Patel was a cast member. After five auditions for the role,the actor was eventually cast in August 2007, The film's producer found the original choice for the lead role, Ruslaan Mumtaz "too good looking for the role and so he was replaced by Dev Patel". To prepare for the role, Patel went along with Boyle while scouting for filming locations, where he was able to observe the Dharavi slums for himself. He also reported having had a brief internship at a call centre and working in a hotel, where he spent a day washing dishes and generally observing life in Mumbai. After the release of Slumdog Millionaire at the end of 2008, Patel went on to receive a number of awards for his performance, including a British Independant Film Award, National Board of Review Award, Chicago Film Critics Association Award, and two Black Reel Awards for Best Actor and Best Breakthrough Performance. On 18 December 2008, it was announced that Patel was also nominated for Best Supporting Actor at the 2009 Screen Actor Guild Awards. The award eventually went posthumously to Heath Ledger for his performance in The Dark Knight, though Patel did win the Screen Actor Guild Award for outstanding Performance by a Cast in a motio picture which he shared with ten other cast members from Slumdog Millionaire.On 8 January 2009, Patel was honoured with the Critic's Choice Award for Best Young Performer. He was also nominated for two London Critics Circle Film Awards the NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor, and the 2009 BAFTA Awards for Best Leading Actor.The film itself won four Golden Globes, including Best Drama Film, and 8 Academy Awards. In 2008, Patel auditioned for a role in M.Night Shyamalan's The Last Airbender, a feature film adaptation of the animated series Avatar: The Last Airbender. In February 2009, it was announced that Patel has replaced Jesse McCatney for the role of Prince Zuko, after McCartney's tour dates conflicted with a boot camp scheduled for the cast to train in martial arts. Shyamalan stated that Patel was "already one of the guys I was interested in. Then I saw Slumdog Millionaire, and the kid just grew in my eyes".  "I started watching [the show Who Wants To Be A Millionaire] in my trailer in India ... I see why the fan base is so big. It's got action but a lot of moral messages." - Dev Patel | ||||||||||
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