Athar ul-Haque Malik (born 13 November 1952), known professionally as Art Malik, is a Pakistani-born British actor who achieved international fame in the 1980s through his starring and subsidiary roles in assorted British and

Merchant Ivory A merchant is a person who trades in commodities produced by other people, especially one who trades with foreign countries. Historically, a merchant is anyone who is involved in business or trade. Merchants have operated for as long as indust ...

television serials and films. He is especially remembered for his portrayal of the out-of-place Hari Kumar in '' The Jewel in the Crown'' at the outset of his career.

Early life

Malik was born Athar ul-Haque Malik in Bahawalpur, Pakistan, the son of Zaibunisa and Mazhar ul-Haque Malik, a doctor who worked as an ophthalmic surgeon in

Britain Britain most often refers to: * The United Kingdom, a sovereign state in Europe comprising the island of Great Britain, the north-eastern part of the island of Ireland and many smaller islands * Great Britain, the largest island in the United King ...

. When his father got a job as a surgeon in

Moorfields Eye Hospital Moorfields Eye Hospital is a specialist NHS eye hospital in Finsbury in the London Borough of Islington in London, England run by Moorfields Eye Hospital NHS Foundation Trust. Together with the UCL Institute of Ophthalmology, which is adjacen ...

, Malik was brought to

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

in 1956, aged three. From the age of eleven, he attended Bec Grammar School in

Tooting Tooting is a district in South London, forming part of the London Borough of Wandsworth and partly in the London Borough of Merton. It is located south south-west of Charing Cross. History Tooting has been settled since pre- Saxon times ...

. After an unsatisfactory stint of business studies and a term studying acting at the

Questors Theatre The Questors Theatre is a theatre venue located in the London Borough of Ealing, west London. It is home of The Questors, a large theatre company which hosts a season of around twenty productions a year and is a member of the ''Little Theatre Gui ...

, he won a scholarship to

Guildhall School of Music and Drama The Guildhall School of Music and Drama is a conservatoire and drama school located in the City of London, United Kingdom. Established in 1880, the school offers undergraduate and postgraduate training in all aspects of classical music and jazz ...

. Before long, he was working with the

Old Vic Old or OLD may refer to: Places *Old, Baranya, Hungary *Old, Northamptonshire, England * Old Street station, a railway and tube station in London (station code OLD) *OLD, IATA code for Old Town Municipal Airport and Seaplane Base, Old Town, Ma ...

and Royal Shakespeare companies.

Career

In 1982, five years after leaving Guildhall, Malik was cast as Hari Kumar in the Granada Television production of '' The Jewel in the Crown'', based on Paul Scott's ''

Raj Quartet ''The Raj Quartet'' is a four-volume novel sequence, written by Paul Scott, about the concluding years of the British Raj in India. The series was written during the period 1965–75. ''The Times'' called it "one of the most important la ...

''. In 1987, he played Kamran Shah, an Afghan Mujahideen leader who allies with

James Bond The ''James Bond'' series focuses on a fictional British Secret Service agent created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short-story collections. Since Fleming's death in 1964, eight other authors have ...

and leads a raid against Soviet invaders in the 007 film ''

The Living Daylights ''The Living Daylights'' is a 1987 spy film, the fifteenth entry in the ''James Bond'' series produced by Eon Productions, and the first of two to star Timothy Dalton as the fictional MI6 agent James Bond. Directed by John Glen, the film's ...

''. Malik played the role of the son of an Indian mobster in the 1992 film ''

City of Joy ''City of Joy'' (french: La Cité de la joie) is a 1985 novel by Dominique Lapierre. It was adapted as a film by Roland Joffé in 1992. Calcutta is nicknamed "the City of Joy" after this novel, although the slum was based on an area in its twi ...

'' and, in 1993, narrated

Salman Rushdie Sir Ahmed Salman Rushdie (; born 19 June 1947) is an Indian-born British-American novelist. His work often combines magic realism with historical fiction and primarily deals with connections, disruptions, and migrations between Eastern and We ...

's ''

Haroun and the Sea of Stories ''Haroun and the Sea of Stories'' is a 1990 children's novel by Salman Rushdie. It was Rushdie's fifth major publication and followed ''The Satanic Verses''. It is a phantasmagorical story that begins in a city so sad and ruinous that it has fo ...

'' on BBC television's '' Jackanory''. In 1994, Malik played his first big screen villain, Salim Abu Aziz, a stereotypical Islamist, opposite Arnold Schwarzenegger in ''

True Lies ''True Lies'' is a 1994 American spy action comedy film written and directed by James Cameron. It stars Arnold Schwarzenegger, Jamie Lee Curtis, Tom Arnold, Art Malik, Tia Carrere, Bill Paxton, Eliza Dushku, Grant Heslov and Charlton Heston. ...

''. Malik accepted the role, which he described as "a hoot", at a time when he had been 14 months without work and was being pursued by the

Inland Revenue The Inland Revenue was, until April 2005, a department of the British Government responsible for the collection of direct taxation, including income tax, national insurance contributions, capital gains tax, inheritance tax, corporation t ...

for £32,000. Following his appearance in ''True Lies'', Malik was offered several roles in other action films, but turned them down, later explaining, "I didn't want to do action movies that weren't as good." He instead accepted a role in the film ''

Clockwork Mice ''Clockwork Mice'' is a 1995 British drama film directed by Vadim Jean and starring Ian Hart, Catherine Russell and James Bolam. The film score was composed by David Hughes and John Murphy. Plot A teacher manages to bond with a special needs ...

''. Malik took the lead role in the West End production of

Tom Stoppard Sir Tom Stoppard (born , 3 July 1937) is a Czech born British playwright and screenwriter. He has written for film, radio, stage, and television, finding prominence with plays. His work covers the themes of human rights, censorship, and politi ...

's 1995 play '' Indian Ink''. In 1999, Malik played the supporting role of Olympos, the court doctor to Cleopatra, Queen of Egypt, in ''Cleopatra''. In 2001, he narrated the television documentary ''Hajj: The Journey of a Lifetime'' for broadcast on BBC Two and in 2002 he narrated the three part television mini-series ''The British Empire in Colour'' for TWI/Carlton Television. He also played Milkha Singh's father in the 2013 Hindi language film ''

Bhaag Milkha Bhaag ''Bhaag Milkha Bhaag'' () is a 2013 Hindi-language biographical sports drama film directed by Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra from a script written by Prasoon Joshi. The story is based on the life of Milkha Singh, an Indian athlete and Olympian who w ...

'', his first appearance in a film produced in India. Malik had a starring role in

Tom Fontana Tom Fontana (born September 12, 1951) is an American screenwriter, writer, and television producer. Fontana worked on NBC's '' Homicide: Life on the Street'' and created HBO's ''Oz.'' Early life and education Fontana was born on the west si ...

's historical television series '' Borgia'', which ran from 2011 to 2014. In 2014, Malik played Bunran "Bunny" Latif, a retired Pakistani general in season four of ''

Homeland A homeland is a place where a cultural, national, or racial identity has formed. The definition can also mean simply one's country of birth. When used as a proper noun, the Homeland, as well as its equivalents in other languages, often has ethn ...

'', returning in the same role in season eight in 2020. In 2017 he appeared in the first series of Bancroft. Malik appeared in the second episodes of both series 8 of the show ''

Doc Martin ''Doc Martin'' is a British medical comedy drama television series starring Martin Clunes as Doctor Martin Ellingham. It was created by Dominic Minghella after the character of Dr Martin Bamford in the 2000 comedy film '' Saving Grace''. The ...

'' in 2017 and

series 11 Series may refer to: People with the name * Caroline Series (born 1951), English mathematician, daughter of George Series * George Series (1920–1995), English physicist Arts, entertainment, and media Music * Series, the ordered sets used in ...

of '' Doctor Who'', "

The Ghost Monument "The Ghost Monument" is the second episode of the eleventh series of the British science fiction television programme '' Doctor Who''. It was written by showrunner and executive producer Chris Chibnall, directed by Mark Tonderai, and first broad ...

" in 2018.

Personal life

By Malik's own account, the sudden success he enjoyed in 1984 resulted in his excessive drinking. "I was surrounded by people who admired me and I took all of that home with me," he said when interviewed in 2003. "I paid lots of attention to my ego, and not enough to my spirit. It was totally unhealthy, like an illness." The result was a strain on his marriage, leading to his wife leaving him. He also ran up high bills on his credit card, and by 1993 he owed £55,000 to the bank and £32,000 to the Inland Revenue, and was on the verge of being declared bankrupt when he got the lucrative part of Salim Abu Aziz, a terrorist, in James Cameron's ''True Lies''. He and his wife reunited. Malik took a major role in fundraising for relief work for victims of the Gujarat earthquake in 2001, and also appeared on the DEC Pakistan Floods Appeal advertisement in 2010. He lives with his wife Gina Rowe, a fellow student at the Guildhall, whom he married in 1980. They have two daughters, Jessica and Keira. Although from a Muslim background, and having insisted that his character on ''Holby City'' should be a Muslim, Malik describes himself as "not a practising Muslim. I'm probably an apostate, and liable for any right-minded Muslim fundamentalist to put me on a list of people to stamp out."

Filmography

Film

Television

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Malik, Art 1952 births Alumni of the Guildhall School of Music and Drama British film actors of Pakistani descent British male actors of South Asian descent English male film actors English male stage actors English male television actors English people of Pakistani descent Living people Male actors from London Naturalised citizens of the United Kingdom Pakistani emigrants to the United Kingdom People from Bahawalpur Punjabi people Royal Shakespeare Company members