Balti Kings

Sudha BhucharSudha is an acclaimed actor/playwright/founder ofBhuchar Boulevard and co-founder of Tamasha. Theatrewriting credits include Child of the Divide (Time Out No1show 2006/ Winner Asian Media awards 2018), FinalFarewell (Tara Theatre), A Picture of Health (Theatre ofDebate) and Touchstone Tales (Revoluton Arts & WellcomeCollection) and her solo show Evening Conversations (alsoon Audible).Acting credits include: Virdee (BBC1), Expats (PrimeVideo) and the films Ish, Mogul Mowgli and Mary PoppinsReturns.Awards: Tongues on Fire’s Flame Award (2018), EasternEye’s ACTA award (2019) and an honorary doctorate inEnglish Literature by the Royal Central School of Speechand Drama.Shaheen KhanShaheen’s acclaimed career as an actor spans across theatre,film, tv and audio.Films include: Bhaji on the Beach, Bend It Like Beckham,Tomorrow Never Dies and What’s Love Got to Do with it.TV includes: Britz, The Boy with the Topknot, My Life as aPopat, Apple Tree House, Love Match, My Sister-Wife, DrWho and The Reluctant Landlord.Theatre includes: Midnight’s Children (RSC), Rafta Rafta(NT), A Tainted Dawn (Tamasha Theatre), and Macbeth(Tara Arts).Awards: Asian Women of Achievement Award for Arts andCulture and the Tongue’s on Fire Silver Flame Award (2022)Sudha and Shaheen’s co-writing credits include Girlies(now on Audible), Dancing Girls of Lahore and BaltiKings, all for Radio 4.

“The writing is excellent, sharply observant about the lives of the luckless wage-slaves in the kitchen. The acting has a superb understated naturalism… the smells of the Indian cooking as winningly authentic as the humanity of the characterisation.” – The Daily Telegraph"Balti Kings is excellent theatre and gives a faithfulrepresentation of characters that Birmingham’s Asian population know only toowell. A great range of emotions is washed down with humour that is in turnobvious and subtle. The result is a cutting-edgeexamination of a rapidly changing culture"- Metro Life Birmingham."celebrates the potential of live theatre to plunge youinto another word, smells and all…..an inspired idea, well executed under thedirection of Kristine Landon-Smith. It iscompassionate as it gradually reveals the fragility of its weary characters’ lives,but it is also frequently very funny and is full of witty little touches"-Financial Times."This is what I would call Balti Magic- Entertaining, bothfunny and poignant."- Theatreworld internet magazine"Bhuchar and Khan’s humour andsharp eye for telling details make the play both amusing and intriguing. BKrecreates in great details the illusion of cooking a grand buffet…..thehighpoint of the evening is a highly choreographed sequence during which thecooking process really starts to heat up"- The Stage"Balti Kings could scarcely be more timing with itsperfectly judged blend of universal comic themes and cultural in jokes."- MetroLondon."Staged in the round by Kristine Landon-Smith the show winsyou over with its energy, charm and vivacious performances."- The Guardian"A light-hearted and entertaining evening with a seriousinsight into the realities of one group of workers’ lives"- The SocialistReview"a pungent fest ofentertainment guaranteed to whet your appetite. Tamasha presents a multi-sensory experience as the sights,sounds and smells of a real-life Balti kitchen fills the stage."- Metro (Midlands)

• Author biographiesForeword Authors’ Note Cast & Creatives Balti Kings play Production photos Glossary