Fawad Siddiqui
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Fawad Siddiqui is an American actor, improvisational comedian, journalist and cartoonist. He began acting professionally in TV and film in 2008 and first appeared on the
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television show ''
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'' alongside
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and Jeffrey Donovan, then in the
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film ''
The Men Who Stare At Goats ''The Men Who Stare at Goats'' (2004) is a non-fiction work by Jon Ronson concerning the U.S. Army's exploration of New Age concepts and the potential military applications of the paranormal. The title refers to attempts to kill goats by staring ...
'' with Ewan McGregor, and in the indie films ''The Bait'' and '' Festival of Lights''—starring Jimi Mistry and Aidan Quinn. He also had a role in
Queen Latifah Dana Elaine Owens (born March 18, 1970), known professionally as Queen Latifah, is an American rapper, actress, and singer. Born in Newark, New Jersey, she signed with Tommy Boy Records in 1989 and released her debut album ''All Hail the Que ...
produced sequel ''The Cookout Part 2''—starring Charlie Murphy,
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and Faizon Love—and had a recurring role on the fifth season of the Lifetime Network series ''
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''. He also appeared in the latest season of the FX/ The Audience Network series '' Damages''—starring
Glenn Close Glenn Close (born March 19, 1947) is an American actress. Throughout her career spanning over four decades, Close has garnered numerous accolades, including two Screen Actors Guild Awards, three Golden Globe Awards, three Primetime Emmy Awards ...
, Rose Byrne and
John Goodman John Stephen Goodman (born June 20, 1952) is an American actor. He gained national fame for his role as the family patriarch Dan Conner in the ABC comedy series '' Roseanne'' (1988–1997; 2018), for which he received a Golden Globe Award, an ...
—as the shady Afghan information broker Shahbaz Gul opposite Dylan Baker, and in the French comedy ''Bienvenue à Bord''—opposite popular French comedic actors
Franck Dubosc Franck Dubosc (; born 7 November 1963) is a French actor, comedian and stand-up artist. Dubosc occupies 94th place in the list of the most profitable actors of French cinema.
and Valérie Lemercier, released in October 2011. He was featured in the 2013 indie drama '' Sunlight Jr.'', from critically acclaimed director
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, in the role of Jamshed opposite
Matt Dillon Matthew Raymond Dillon (born February 18, 1964) is an American actor. He has received various accolades, including an Oscar and Grammy nomination. Dillon made his feature film debut in '' Over the Edge'' (1979) and established himself as a te ...
and Naomi Watts. He played the role of Mohammed Al Ghamdi alongside
Rupert Friend Rupert William Anthony Friend (born 9 October 1981) is an English actor. He first gained recognition for his roles in '' The Libertine'' (2004) and '' Mrs. Palfrey at the Claremont'' (2005), both of which won him awards for best newcomer. He port ...
in the second season of the Emmy Award-winning
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series '' Homeland'', starring
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and
Mandy Patinkin Mandel Bruce Patinkin (; born November 30, 1952) is an American actor and singer, known for his work in musical theatre, television and film. He is a critically acclaimed Broadway performer, having received three Tony Award nominations, winning ...
. In 2014, he appeared as Arash on the season 2 premier of USA's '' Graceland with
Aaron Tveit Aaron Kyle Tveit (; born October 21, 1983) is an American actor. Tveit originated the lead role of Christian the composer in the stage adaptation of ''Moulin Rouge!'' on Broadway, a performance for which he won the 2020 Tony Award for Best Acto ...
''. In 2017, he appeared as a mosque Imam on '' 24: Legacy'' on
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and as Dr. Ravi Govilla opposite Kyle Chandler on the
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original series '' Bloodline''. In 2018, he also co-starred as one of the main comedic villains, Leo, opposite comedian Paul Rodriguez in Rodriguez' the comedic film '' Chateau Vato,'' which eventually premiered at the 2020 Miami International Film Festival and was subsequently released on
HBO Max HBO Max is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. Launched in the United States on May 27, 2020, the service is built around the libraries of HBO, Warner Bros., Cartoon Netw ...
''.'' He also had a guest appearance on the
Project Greenlight ''Project Greenlight'' is an American documentary television series focusing on first-time filmmakers being given the chance to direct a feature film. It was created by Alex Keledjian, developed by Eli Holzman and produced by Ben Affleck, Matt ...
winning series ''Grown'', which was the premiere fictional series on The Complex. In 2019, he had the role of Younas in the Casey Afleck film ''
Our Friend ''Our Friend'' is a 2019 American biographical drama film directed by Gabriela Cowperthwaite and written by Brad Ingelsby, based on Matthew Teague's 2015 ''Esquire'' article "The Friend: Love Is Not a Big Enough Word". It stars Jason Segel, Dakot ...
'', from critically acclaimed director
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. He then appeared on NBC's '' The Blacklist'' starring
James Spader James Todd Spader (born February 7, 1960) is an American actor. He has portrayed eccentric characters in films such as the drama ''Sex, Lies, and Videotape'' (1989) for which he won the Cannes Film Festival Award for Best Actor, the action scien ...
as the top local Iranian CIA contact employed by Red Reddington's friend Farhad to drive Harold Cooper, played by Harry Lennix, on his mission in the country on the Season 7 episode 'Kuwait'. In 2020, Siddiqui appeared on the Gold Globe winning series ''Ramy'' with star
Ramy Youssef Ramy Youssef ( ar, رامي يوسف; ; born March 26, 1991) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, writer, and director of full Egyptian descent known for his role as Ramy Hassan on the Hulu comedy series '' Ramy'' (2019–present), for whic ...
on
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. He also had a recurring guest-star role as Professor Dawley on the first season of the series ''The Zombie Chronicles,'' from creator Lisa Waring, a slice of life series about a young, aspiring hip-hop artist/zombie in a world where zombies are a normal part of life. That year he also voice-directed and co-starred in the animated film ''Box Life'', from writer/director Michael Sirjue. In 2021, Siddiqui appeared as head hospital lawyer Neil Persaud on the hit show New Amsterdam on NBC opposite
Tyler Labine Tyler Sean Labine (born April 29, 1978) is a Canadian-American actor and comedian. He is best known for starring in the television series ''Breaker High'', ''Invasion'', ''Reaper'', '' Deadbeat'' and as Dr. Iggy Frome, head of psychiatry, in the N ...
, and as murder suspect Muhammed Qadir on the long-running CBS crime-drama '' Blue Bloods'' opposite stars Donnie Wahlberg and Marisa Ramirez. In 2022, Siddiqui voiced the recurring character JR, a bumbling squadroom cop on the first season of the
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original Mexican comedy series ''Harina'', based on a viral hit comedic sketch from popular video sketch comedy group Backdoor. He also guest-starred on the hit CBS series ''FBI'', produced by Dick Wolf, as mercenary Tamir Hazara, an old arch-nemesis of series star Zeeko Zaki's Agent OA Zidan, who returns from apparent death in Afghanistan to wreak vengeance in New York City. Siddiqui has also recently completed work as a recurring character on the upcoming 2023 Paramount+ series ''Lioness,'' starring
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, Nicole Kidman and
Laysla de Oliveira Laysla De Oliveira (born January 11, 1992) is a Canadian actress. She is known for her roles as Dodge in the Netflix series '' Locke & Key'', Veronica in the drama film ''Guest of Honour'', and Becky DeMuth in the horror film ''In the Tall Gra ...
. Siddiqui has also appeared in commercials for
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, Capital One, Math Wizard, Danbury Hospital and others. He regularly performs with such
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improvisational troupes as Laughing Gas and Impromedy, with the Improv Playhouse in
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, and with the
Steel City Improv Theater Steel is an alloy made up of iron with added carbon to improve its strength and fracture resistance compared to other forms of iron. Many other elements may be present or added. Stainless steels that are corrosion- and oxidation-resistant ty ...
in
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, Pennsylvania. He is currently a co-director and performer with The Front Yard Theater Collective which produces a monthly variety show at the historic Olympia Theater in
Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...
. Siddiqui is also a cartoonist, having created a new field of live illustration of improvised theater shows, which he does for improv theaters throughout the country.


Journalism

Siddiqui studied journalism in college and graduated from the
University of Miami The University of Miami (UM, UMiami, Miami, U of M, and The U) is a private research university in Coral Gables, Florida. , the university enrolled 19,096 students in 12 colleges and schools across nearly 350 academic majors and programs, incl ...
in 2003 with a degree in English and Communication. After graduation, he moved to Indianapolis and worked for '' Islamic Horizons Magazine'' in Plainfield as an assistant editor and then to Chicago for a time as reporting fellow with
Northwestern University Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern is the oldest chartered university in Illinois and is ranked among the most prestigious academic institutions in the world. Charte ...
's Academy for Alternative Journalism and the ''
Chicago Reader The ''Chicago Reader'', or ''Reader'' (stylized as ЯEADER), is an American alternative weekly newspaper in Chicago, Illinois, noted for its literary style of journalism and coverage of the arts, particularly film and theater. It was founded by a ...
'' in 2004. He has also freelanced for ''
The Miami Herald The ''Miami Herald'' is an American daily newspaper owned by the McClatchy Company and headquartered in Doral, Florida, a city in western Miami-Dade County and the Miami metropolitan area, several miles west of Downtown Miami.Sun Sentinel'', including helping to cover the local Muslim community reaction to the Sept. 11th, 2001 terrorist attacks. His efforts to improv local news coverage of the Muslim community at this time was covered by the ''
Miami New Times The ''Miami New Times'' is a newspaper published in Miami, Florida, United States, and distributed every Thursday. It primarily serves the Miami area and is headquartered in Miami's Wynwood Art District. Overview It was acquired by Village Voic ...
''. He was also a section editor for the nationally syndicated Muslim community newspaper ''
The Muslim Observer ''The Muslim Observer'' (TMO) is a weekly newspaper, founded in 1998, focussing on issues relevant to Muslims and Islam. It is based in Farmington, Michigan, United States – a publication by the parent media organization ''Muslim Media Networ ...
'', covering the South Florida area.


Acting & improvisation

Siddiqui would later return to Miami and discover improvisational theater through the Laughing Gas Theater Company. Eventually, he would go on to study improv at Chicago's famous ImprovOlympic and Second City Theaters. He has also studied at Orlando's SAK Comedy Lab, and at New York's PIT and Magnet Theaters. Today, he splits his time between his native Miami, Florida, New York, Los Angeles and Pittsburgh, PA, working as an actor and in improv throughout the United States, including performances at the Gainesville Improv Festival and at the Del Close Marathon in New York. He is a regular team member with Laughing Gas Improv, Impromedy, Sick Puppies, The Front Yard Theater Collective, Wunderstudies: The Improvised Musical, The Cellar Dwellers, The Pittsburgh Improv Jam, the Steel City Improv Theater, and They Improv. In 2009, Siddiqui also taught workshops on Improvisational Acting at the
National Academy of Performing Arts The National Academy of Performing Arts ( ur, ; abbreviated as NAPA) is a performing arts school located at Hindu Gymkhana, Karachi, Hindu Gymkhana in Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan. NAPA was established in 2005 as an institution to conserve and tea ...
(NAPA) in
Karachi, Pakistan Karachi (; ur, ; ; ) is the most populous city in Pakistan and 12th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 20 million. It is situated at the southern tip of the country along the Arabian Sea coast. It is the former cap ...
.


Cartooning

During his time studying and performing improvisation in Chicago in 2008, Siddiqui developed a new form of cartooning by creating live cartoon versions of long-form improv shows, primarily at ImprovOlympic Theater, but also at other area theaters including The Second City, the Annoyance and the Playground. He has since produced hundreds of such illustrations, being hired by many prominent improv teams around the country in the field to catalogue their work at those and at other theaters including iOWest and
The Groundlings The Groundlings is an American improvisational and sketch comedy troupe and school based in Los Angeles. The troupe was formed by Gary Austin in 1974 and uses an improv format influenced by Viola Spolin, whose improvisational theater techniques ...
Theater in Los Angeles, the
Upright Citizens Brigade The Upright Citizens Brigade is an improvisational and sketch comedy group that emerged from Chicago's ImprovOlympic in 1990. The original incarnation of the group consisted of Matt Besser, Amy Poehler, Ian Roberts, Matt Walsh, Adam McKay, Ri ...
in New York, Theatre 99 in Charleston, South Carolina, the Steel City Improv Theater in Pittsburgh and elsewhere. He has illustrated shows for teams at The Chicago Sketchfest, The
Chicago Improv Festival (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...
, the Del Close Marathon, and the Gainesville Improv Festival.


Music

Siddiqui also founded a satiric comedic acoustic eclectic folk fusion band in college called The Muslim Cowboys and performed with them at Islamic events throughout the country.Jamat
, a British website covering Muslim community news.


Notes


References

* https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1288500/ * https://web.archive.org/web/20100908234337/http://www.laughinggasimprov.com/current_cast.htm * http://www.impromedymiami.com/ * https://web.archive.org/web/20090331224622/http://chicago.ioimprov.com/ * http://www.improvplayhouse.com/ * http://www.sakcomedy.com * http://www.steelcityimprov.com
A well-respected improv news & classified section used by the Chicago Improv Community and the leadership of various local theaters, featuring reviews of his work.

Similar improv resource page for the New York improv community.

Note, these are not regular message boards. These sections are strictly monitored informational portals for improv news in two of the biggest markets for such work in the country, created and run by the leaders of leading theaters in the field.

A British website covering Muslim community news.
* http://www.miaminewtimes.com/content/printVersion/243489/ * http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_multi=MH%7C&p_product=MH&p_theme=realcities2&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&s_site=miamii&s_trackval=MH&s_dispstring=fawad%20siddiqui%20AND%20&p_field_advanced-0=&p_text_advanced-0=(fawad%20siddiqui)&xcal_numdocs=20&p_perpage=50&p_sort=YMD_date:D&p_field_date-0=YMD_date&p_params_date-0=date:B,E&p_text_date-0=before%2001/17/2011&xcal_useweights=no


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Siddiqui, Fawad American male actors Living people University of Miami School of Communication alumni American male journalists American people of Pakistani descent Year of birth missing (living people)