Faran Tahir to play Othello in stage play

According to a press release, the play is going to be a Shakespeare Theatre Company production, with internationally acclaimed director Ron Daniels overseeing the direction. Ron has previously served as the associate artistic director of the American Repertory Theatre and as artistic director of Royal Shakespeare Company’s (RSC) The Other Place Theatre. He is also an honorary associate director at the RSC.

Othello, which is often termed as one of the best works of English author William Shakespeare, is a tragedy which was written in 1603. It narrates the story of a Moorish general in the Venetian army; his beloved wife Desdemona; his loyal lieutenant Cassio and his trusted but unfaithful ensign, Iago. The story explores dark themes such as racism, love, jealousy, betrayal, revenge and repentance. Over the years, Othello has been adapted numerous times in film, TV, opera, ballet, music, graphic novels and paintings, inspiring other fictional stories as well.

Speaking about his excitement on portraying a character such as Othello who possesses both greatness and weakness at the same time, Faran comments, “I am very excited to take on this challenge and the timely themes of this wonderful tragedy including the heartbreaking destruction of a man”.

Faran Tahir (born February 16, 1964) is a Pakistani-American film and television actor. Tahir is best known for his act as Raza, the leader of a terrorist organization, “The Ten Rings” in Iron Man (2008). In 1985, he appeared as Bolshintsov in U.C. Berkeley’s production of A Month in the Country. He graduated from the University of California, Berkeley, with a BA in Theatre before acquiring a graduate degree from the American Repertory Theater’s (A.R.T.) Institute for Advanced Theater Training at Harvard University.

He made his film debut playing Nathoo in the Disney’s 1994 live-action version of Rudyard Kipling’s The Jungle Book. 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. In 2008, Tahir played the role of the villain Raza in the Marvel Comics-based Iron Man. He played Starfleet Captain Richard Robau in the 2009 film Star Trek. In 2013, Tahir played President Patel in the science-fiction film Elysium.