Born:
June 30, 1967
in
Kenya
Best Known For:
Playing Masood Ahmed in EastEnders.
Early-life:
Born Nitin Chandra Ganatra in Kenya on June 30, 1967, his family's origins are in India. His great grandfather had arrived in Kenya to work on the railways. Nitin was three when his family moved to Coventry. He went on to study Drama, Film and Television at the University of Bristol.
Career:
His many film and TV appearances include roles in Truly Madly Deeply (1990), Secrets & Lies (1996), This Life, Extremely Dangerous, Murder in Mind, The Jury, Rescue Me, Being April, Holby City and Bride & Prejudice (2004). In 2005, he became known to worldwide audiences for playing Prince Pondicherry in Tim Burton's Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. He went on to star in Meet the Magoons, Jane Hall, The Bill, New Tricks and Mumbai Calling before joining EastEnders in 2007 as good-natured postman Masood Ahmed. More recently, he investigated why his family moved to England in Who Do You Think You Are?
Quote:
"I've got that sort of face that always, always gets stopped at immigration and customs. It just says ‘come here sir we need to do a strip search'"
Trivia:
At the British Soap Awards 2009, Ganatra and his EastEnders co-star Nina Wadia won the award for Best On Screen Partnership.