Faran Haroon Tahir (born February 16, 1963) is a

Pakistani-American Pakistani Americans ( ur, ) are Americans who originate from Pakistan. The term may also refer to people who also hold a dual Pakistani and U.S. citizenship. Educational attainment level and household income are much higher in the Pakistani-Am ...

actor. Tahir was born in Los Angeles to an artistic family. His parents were actor Naeem Tahir and radio host Yasmeen Tahir and his grandparents were writers Imtiaz Ali Taj and Hijab Imtiaz Ali. Tahir went on to graduate from theatre programs at the

University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant u ...

and the

Institute for Advanced Theater Training The American Repertory Theater/Moscow Art Theatre (ART/МХАТ) Institute for Advanced Theater Training at Harvard University was founded in 1987 as a training ground for the new American Theater by the Robert Brustein and the American Repertory ...

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...

. Tahir made his television debut as a desk clerk on ''

Midnight Caller ''Midnight Caller'' is an American drama television series created by Richard DiLello, which aired on NBC from October 25, 1988, to May 17, 1991. It was one of the first television series to address the dramatic possibilities of the then-growin ...

'' in 1989. He made his film debut as

Nathoo This is a list of characters that appear in Rudyard Kipling's 1894 ''The Jungle Book'' story collection, its 1895 sequel ''The Second Jungle Book'', and the various film adaptations based on those books. Characters include both human and talking ...

Disney's The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...

1994 live-action version of ''

The Jungle Book ''The Jungle Book'' (1894) is a collection of stories by the English author Rudyard Kipling. Most of the characters are animals such as Shere Khan the tiger and Baloo the bear, though a principal character is the boy or "man-cub" Mowgli, ...

''. He has gone on to star in a variety of roles, such as Raza in ''

Iron Man Iron Man is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character was co-created by writer and editor Stan Lee, developed by scripter Larry Lieber, and designed by artists Don Heck and Jack Kirby. The charact ...

'' (2008), Captain Robau in ''

Star Trek ''Star Trek'' is an American science fiction media franchise created by Gene Roddenberry, which began with the eponymous 1960s television series and quickly became a worldwide pop-culture phenomenon. The franchise has expanded into vari ...

'' (2009), and President Patel in ''Elysium'' (2013). In 2016, he played the titular role of ''

Othello ''Othello'' (full title: ''The Tragedy of Othello, the Moor of Venice'') is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare, probably in 1603, set in the contemporary Ottoman–Venetian War (1570–1573) fought for the control of the Island of Cypru ...

'' in a production by the Shakespeare Theatre Company in

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

Early life

Faran Haroon Tahir was born on 16 February 1963 in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

to Naeem Tahir, a veteran actor and respected writer, and Yasmeen Tahir. Through his mother, "one of the most famous voices of Radio Pakistan", his grandparents are famous writers Imtiaz Ali Taj and Hijab Imtiaz Ali, also the first ever Muslim female pilot, while his younger brother

Ali Tahir Ali Tahir ( ur, ) is a Pakistani actor, writer and director. Ali is known for his roles in '' Inkaar'', ''Mehram'', ''Sangat'', '' Teen Bata Teen'' and many other dramas. He is son of known writer/actor Naeem Tahir and actor brother of Faran Tah ...

(b. 1972) is an actor as well, better known for starring in the comedy-drama sitcom ''

Teen Bata Teen ''Teen Bata Teen'' (or ''3 Bata 3'') ( ur, تین بٹا تین Lit: ''Three divided by Three'') was a 1995 Pakistani comedy-drama sitcom which was written by Adeel Hashmi and directed by Jawad Bashir. It was the first television sitcom of Paki ...

''. His other younger brother, Mehran Tahir (b. 1965), is a TV producer, who has for instance worked for

Hum TV Hum TV is a 24-hour Urdu General Entertainment TV channel based in Karachi, Pakistan. It was founded by Sultana Siddiqui and Duraid Qureshi. It is owned by Hum Network Limited and traded on Pakistan Stock Exchange as (HUMNL). Hum Network Limi ...

. Faran Tahir grew up in

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

and returned to the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

in 1980. Tahir studied business economics at the

before transitioning to the performing arts, graduating with a degree in theatre. He later graduated with a MFA from the American Repertory Theater's (A.R.T.)

Career

He made his film debut playing

in the

1994 live-action version of

Rudyard Kipling Joseph Rudyard Kipling ( ; 30 December 1865 – 18 January 1936)''The Times'', (London) 18 January 1936, p. 12. was an English novelist, short-story writer, poet, and journalist. He was born in British India, which inspired much of his work. ...

's ''

''. He has since appeared in such films as '' Picture Perfect'' (1997), '' Anywhere But Here'' (1999) and '' Charlie Wilson's War'' (2007). He also played the male lead in the 1999 independent film ''

ABCD ABCD is a list of the first four letters in the English alphabet. It may also refer to: Film * ''ABCD'' (film), a 2005 Tamil romance film * ''ABCD 2'', a 2015 Indian dance film * '' ABCD: American-Born Confused Desi (2013 film)'', a 2013 Mal ...

''. In 2008, Tahir played the role of the villain Raza in the

Marvel Comics Marvel Comics is an American comic book publishing, publisher and the flagship property of Marvel Entertainment, a divsion of The Walt Disney Company since September 1, 2009. Evolving from Timely Comics in 1939, ''Magazine Management/Atlas Co ...

-based ''

''. He played Starfleet Captain Richard Robau in the 2009 film ''

''. In 2013, Tahir played President Patel in the science-fiction film ''

Elysium Elysium (, ), otherwise known as the Elysian Fields ( grc, Ἠλύσιον πεδίον, ''Ēlýsion pedíon'') or Elysian Plains, is a conception of the afterlife that developed over time and was maintained by some Greek religious and philos ...

''. Tahir has guest starred on many television series, including ''

Alias Alias may refer to: * Pseudonym * Pen name * Nickname Arts and entertainment Film and television * ''Alias'' (2013 film), a 2013 Canadian documentary film * ''Alias'' (TV series), an American action thriller series 2001–2006 * ''Alias the ...

'', ''

The Practice ''The Practice'' is an American legal drama television series created by David E. Kelley centering on partners and associates at a Boston law firm. The show ran for eight seasons on ABC, from March 4, 1997, to May 16, 2004. It won an Emmy in 1 ...

'', '' Family Law'', '' The Agency'', ''

NYPD Blue ''NYPD Blue'' is an American police procedural television series set in New York City, exploring the struggles of the fictional 15th Precinct detective squad in Manhattan. Each episode typically intertwines several plots involving an ensemble c ...

'', ''

Lost Lost may refer to getting lost, or to: Geography *Lost, Aberdeenshire, a hamlet in Scotland * Lake Okeechobee Scenic Trail, or LOST, a hiking and cycling trail in Florida, US History *Abbreviation of lost work, any work which is known to have bee ...

'', '' 7th Heaven'', '' The West Wing'', ''

Walker, Texas Ranger ''Walker, Texas Ranger'' is an American action crime television series created by Leslie Greif and Paul Haggis. It was inspired by the film ''Lone Wolf McQuade'', with both this series and that film starring Chuck Norris as a member of the Texa ...

'', '' The D.A.'', '' 24'', ''

Monk A monk (, from el, μοναχός, ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a person who practices religious asceticism by monastic living, either alone or with any number of other monks. A monk may be a person who decides to dedica ...

'', ''

Justice Justice, in its broadest sense, is the principle that people receive that which they deserve, with the interpretation of what then constitutes "deserving" being impacted upon by numerous fields, with many differing viewpoints and perspective ...

'', '' Cold Case'', '' Chuck'', ''

Hawaii Five-0 Hawaii Five-O or Hawaii Five-0 may refer to: * Hawaii Five-0 (2010 TV series), ''Hawaii Five-0'' (2010 TV series), an American action police procedural television series * Hawaii Five-O (1968 TV series), ''Hawaii Five-O'' (1968 TV series), an Ame ...

'' and ''

Warehouse 13 ''Warehouse 13'' is an American science fiction television series that originally ran from July 7, 2009, to May 19, 2014, on the Syfy network, and was executive produced by Jack Kenny and David Simkins for Universal Cable Productions. Described ...

''. He also co-starred with

Robert Beltran Robert Adame Beltran (born November 19, 1953) is an American actor, known for his role as Commander Chakotay on the 1990s television series '' Star Trek: Voyager''. He is also known for stage acting in California, and for playing Raoul Mendoza ...

and

Chase Masterson Chase Masterson (born Christianne Carafano on February 26, 1963) is an American actress and singer. Early life Chase Masterson was born Christianne Carafano in Colorado Springs, Colorado. As her father was in the Army,Sci-Fi Channel Syfy (formerly Sci-Fi Channel, later shortened to Sci Fi; stylized as SYFY) is an American basic cable channel owned by the NBCUniversal Television and Streaming division of Comcast's NBCUniversal through NBCUniversal Cable Entertainment. Launc ...

original movie ''

Manticore The manticore or mantichore (Latin: ''mantichōra''; reconstructed Old Persian: ; Modern fa, مردخوار ) is a Persian legendary creature similar to the Egyptian sphinx that proliferated in western European medieval art as well. It has the ...

''. He also starred in the medical drama series '' Grey's Anatomy'' as Isaac and appeared on the CW series ''

Supernatural Supernatural refers to phenomena or entities that are beyond the laws of nature. The term is derived from Medieval Latin , from Latin (above, beyond, or outside of) + (nature) Though the corollary term "nature", has had multiple meanings si ...

'' as the Egyptian god

Osiris Osiris (, from Egyptian ''wsjr'', cop, ⲟⲩⲥⲓⲣⲉ , ; Phoenician: 𐤀𐤎𐤓, romanized: ʾsr) is the god of fertility, agriculture, the afterlife, the dead, resurrection, life, and vegetation in ancient Egyptian religion. He was ...

in the seventh season's episode "Defending Your Life". Tahir starred in the ghost horror film ''Jinn''. The role of Frank, Cliff Barnes' right-hand man in the reboot of ''

Dallas Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...

''. In 2015 Tahir appeared in a recurring role as the Commander on '' Supergirl''. He appeared in '' JAG'' in the episodes "Ice Queen" and "Meltdown" which served as the two pilot episodes for the series ''

NCIS NCIS or N.C.I.S. may refer to: Law enforcement * National Criminal Intelligence Service, the predecessor to the Serious Organised Crime Agency of the United Kingdom * Naval Criminal Investigative Service, a United States law enforcement and intelli ...

''. Seven years later, Tahir appeared in the spin-off '' NCIS: Los Angeles''. In 2016 Tahir joined '' American Crime'' as Rhys Bashir, and was cast as Captain Nemo on ''

Once Upon a Time "Once upon a time" is a stock phrase used to introduce a narrative of past events, typically in fairy tales and folk tales. It has been used in some form since at least 1380 (according to the ''Oxford English Dictionary'') in storytelling in the ...

. ''In 2017, Tahir played the role of Mallick in Syfy's TV show, ''12 Monkeys''.. On his visit to Karachi, Pakistan, he appeared in a web series '' Speak Your Heart With Samina Peerzada'' in January 2019. Faran will be seen in the upcoming Pakistani movie Umro Ayyar- A New Beginning, an action thriller movie produced by Azfar Jafri under the banner of VR Chili Production. Umro Ayyar- A New Beginning is expected to be released in 2022 worldwide.

Filmography

Film

Television

Video games

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Tahir, Faran 1963 births Living people Male actors from Los Angeles American expatriates in Pakistan American male film actors American male television actors Institute for Advanced Theater Training, Harvard University alumni University of California, Berkeley alumni 20th-century American male actors 21st-century American male actors American male soap opera actors American film actors of Pakistani descent