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Sanjeev Kohli

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Sanjeev Kohli
Kohli speaking at a publicity event ahead of the 2014 Commonwealth Games
Born
Sanjeev Singh Kohli

(1971-11-30) 30 November 1971 (age 52)
London, England
EducationUniversity of Glasgow
Occupations
  • Actor
  • comedian
  • writer
Years active1990s–present
Known forStill Game
Meet the Magoons
Fags, Mags and Bags
River City
SpouseFiona
Children3
RelativesHardeep Singh Kohli (brother)

Sanjeev Singh Kohli (born 30 November 1971) is a Scottish actor, comedian, and writer. He is best known for his role as shopkeeper Navid Harrid in the BBC sitcom Still Game (2002–2007, 2016–2019), Ramesh Majhu in the radio sitcom Fags, Mags and Bags (2007–present), and A.J. Jandhu in the BBC Scotland soap opera River City (2015–2022). Since 2019, Kohli has hosted his own television talk show Sanjeev Kohli's Big Talk, on the BBC Scotland channel.[1]

Early life

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Kohli was born in London on 30 November 1971,[2] to a social worker and a teacher, who had emigrated to the United Kingdom in 1966 from India.[3] When he was three years old, they moved to Scotland.[4] Kohli's parents could afford to move him, aged six, and his brothers to be educated by the Jesuits at St Aloysius' College, a Roman Catholic school in Central Glasgow. To pay for their children's education, Kohli's parents ran a corner shop.[3]

Kohli attended Glasgow University, initially to study Medicine, but changed course to study Mathematics,[5] gaining a first-class degree, and subsequently studied for a PhD.[3]

Career

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Kohli starred as Surjit Magoon in Meet the Magoons, co-written by his brother Hardeep, for Channel 4.[6] and has appeared in several episodes of the BBC comedy series Look Around You as Synthesizer Patel.[7] He is a former presenter of the BBC's Asian Network and has previously written for Goodness Gracious Me, The Big Breakfast and Chewin' the Fat, which was also written by future Still Game co-stars, Ford Kiernan and Greg Hemphill.

In December 2006, the Sunday Mail revealed that Kohli would be starring in a major ITV thriller, Losing Gemma. Starring alongside Alice Eve, he played "a member of the British High Commission, who helps a young British tourist jailed in Delhi, India".[8] Kohli revealed in 2007 that he would be working on a radio comedy project for BBC Radio 4, entitled Fags, Mags and Bags.[4] The series was broadcast in 2008 and was nominated for a Sony Award.[9] The Daily Record also revealed Kohli would be writing for ITV children's show, My Life as a Popat.[4] Kohli has also starred in BBC Three's Rush Hour as an intolerant taxicab driver,[10] and on the same channel in Phoo Action as a television news presenter.[11]

On 21 August 2007, he presented a show called 10 Things To Hate About The Edinburgh Festival. Kohli also sometimes appears as a pundit on BBC One Scotland's Saturday afternoon Sportscene football programme. Kohli made a brief cameo in a speaking role as himself in an episode of BBC's VideoGaiden, where he received a fish in the mail as a gift from the hosts in an attempt to recreate the Nintendo game Animal Crossing. One of the hosts was Robert Florence, a writer whom Kohli worked with on Chewin' the Fat.[12]

In February 2008, it was announced that he would play the role of God in the video for Glasgow band Attic Lights single "God."[13]

In 2011, Kohli appeared on the Scottish tea-time magazine show The Hour on STV. He co-hosted in two separate weeks (ten episodes), alongside main presenter Michelle McManus.[citation needed]

In 2012, he appeared on the Channel 4 comedy programme Fresh Meat as a dentistry lecturer Dr Minaj.

In 2014, Kohli joined the rest of the cast of Still Game in the comeback live show at the SSE Hydro in Glasgow. There were 21 performances of the sold-out show.

In October 2015, Kohli made his first appearance as A.J. Jandhu in the Scottish soap opera River City.

Since April 2019, he has hosted Sanjeev Kohli's Big Talk on the BBC Scotland channel.

Personal life

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Kohli lives in Glasgow with his wife, Fiona, and their three children.[3]

He has two elder brothers — Randeep Singh Kohli (b. 1966), a senior police officer with the Metropolitan Police in London, and Hardeep Singh Kohli (b. 1969), who is also a journalist and broadcaster and lives in Edinburgh.[3]

Filmography

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Year Title Role Notes Channel
2002 Comedy Lab Surjit Meet the Magoons Special E4
2002–2007, 2016–2019 Still Game Navid Harrid Series regular BBC One
2004 Look Around You Synthesizer Patel BBC Two
2004–2005 Shoebox Zoo Mr Kasmani Series regular BBC One
2005 Meet the Magoons Surjit Series regular Channel 4
2007 The Peter Serafinowicz Show Various characters Series regular BBC Two
2009 Hope Springs Mo Khan Series regular BBC One
2010 Rab C Nesbitt Mr Khan Guest role BBC Two
Angelos Epithemiou's Moving On Gupta Series regular BBC Three
2011 Gary Tank Commander Director Guest role BBC Two
2012 Fresh Meat Dr Minaj Recurring role Channel 4
2013 Bob Servant Norrie Guest role BBC Four
Filth Sunil
The IT Crowd Booth Channel 4
2014 Walter Hardeep
Still Game: Live at the Hydro Navid Harrid Main cast BBC One
2015 Fried Mike Fagins BBC Three
You Me and the Apocalypse Doctor Guest role Sky 1
2015–2022 River City Amandeep 'AJ' Jandhu Series regular BBC One
2016 Cold Feet Shopkeeper ITV
2018 Stan & Ollie Glasgow Empire Manager Film
2019 Dark Sense Sir Parduman Nagra Film
Shooting Clerks Jared Patel Film
2020 Lost at Christmas Sid Film
2022 Magpie Murders Sajid Khan / Dr Kamal Series regular BBC One
Little English Ranjeet Film
2023 Stonehouse Prosecuting Counsel ITV
2024 The Madame Blanc Mysteries Sonny Montario Guest role Channel 5 / Acorn TV
Dinosaur Sachin BBC comedy[14] BBC Three
Sharp Instinct: Volume II Ravi Khossla Film
Moonflower Murders Sajid Post-production[15] BBC One

References

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  1. ^ "Sanjeev Kohli's Big Talk". BBC. Retrieved 29 October 2020.
  2. ^ England & Wales, Birth Index: 1837–1983
  3. ^ a b c d e McFerran, Ann (26 August 2007). "Relative Values: Hardeep Singh Kohli and his brother Sanjeev". The Times. London. Retrieved 5 October 2007.
  4. ^ a b c English, Paul (9 April 2007). "TILL GAME". Daily Record (Scotland). Retrieved 16 April 2007.
  5. ^ tawhitelaw (29 August 2007), 0032, retrieved 14 June 2021
  6. ^ "Meet the Magoons". British Sitcom Guide. Retrieved 6 October 2007.
  7. ^ "Look Around You". BBC Press Office. 11 January 2005. Retrieved 5 October 2007.
  8. ^ "Navid's Game for New TV Role". Sunday Mail. Retrieved 18 December 2006.[dead link]
  9. ^ "Sony Radio Academy awards 2008 nomination". The Guardian. London. 10 April 2008. Retrieved 23 May 2010.
  10. ^ "Rush Hour". BBC Online. Retrieved 6 October 2007.
  11. ^ "Still Game Sanjeev To Be TV Newsreader". Daily Record (Scotland). 27 September 2007. Retrieved 10 May 2007. [dead link]
  12. ^ "YouTube". videoGaiden: Rab and Ryan Go Animal Crossing. Archived from the original on 17 January 2016. Retrieved 31 August 2007.
  13. ^ "Sanjeev Kohli's New Role As God". Daily Record. Retrieved 26 February 2008. [dead link]
  14. ^ "Casting confirmed for BBC comedy series Dinosaur as filming commences". BBC Media Centre. Retrieved 12 August 2023.
  15. ^ O'Rourke, Ryan (14 December 2023). "Lesley Manville Is Back on the Case in First 'Moonflower Murders' Images". Collider. Retrieved 25 May 2024.
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