Biography
A native of New Delhi, India, British character actor of theater and film Roshan Seth honed the skills he learned at London's Academy of Music and Dramatic Arts in British repertory theater. His first break came in
Peter Brook's production of A Midsummer Night's Dream, which toured in 1972. Seth entered feature films in
Richard Lester's
Juggernaut (1974), but because subsequent filmmakers only wanted Seth for ethnic roles, his career abruptly stalled. Discouraged, he abandoned acting and returned to India, where he worked as an editor and journalist until the early '80s, when
Richard Attenborough asked Seth to play Pandit Nehru in
Gandhi (1982). Shortly thereafter, Seth essayed Indian author Victor Mehta and toured the globe in playwright David Hare's biography A Map of the World. After the play's Broadway run, Seth's movie career took off, with roles in
Steven Spielberg's
Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984) and
David Lean's
A Passage to India (1984). Seth's subsequent film credits include
Mississippi Masala (1992),
Street Fighter (1994), and
The Journey (1997). ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide