Today we’d like to introduce you to Ariyan Kassam.
Ariyan, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I’d like to start with my Family history because it has a lot to do with why I’m here and what I do. So my family were originally from a City called Bukhara in what was then known as Central Asia. It was a well-known stop on the Silk Road trade route between the East and the West. By trade they were Merchants and Sailors, and after the reign of The Ottoman Empire, my family moved into a town in Western India called Kutch. Here they settled with the locals into the late 1800s and thereafter under British rule migrated into Zanzibar, Tanzania and from there Kenya and Uganda. My Paps was born in Kampala Uganda and my Mama, Mombasa Kenya to an Indian Father and Irish Mother, I know its a mad one. My Family would then move to London where I was born and shortly after moved back into Nairobi Kenya, because Sun, and thats where I spent most of my formative years.
In 2001, we moved to South Africa where I matured, and found my love for acting and performing through my exposure to the Zulu Oral tradition of storytelling. So yea I’m an actor in a Brown family, I know its quite rare but we did it. The talk was difficult, after telling him I am an Actor I’m pretty sure my dad said “Son, its pronounced Doctor” lol. But after seeing my talent and passion for the craft they graciously allowed me to go train at a Conservatory. No matter what the passion is, Brown parents need that degree. So after completing a foundation course at Londons prestigious Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, I felt I needed a change in environment, technique and a new experience. California was the answer, I was accepted into the California Institute of the Arts for a BFA in Acting August 2014 and graduated May 2018.
Got that degree, Parents were happy. I really did enjoy my time there, honing in on my skillset, challenging myself with experimental playwrights and directors, and I was ready to share my stories with the world. Specifically, the stories of my family members, breaking boundaries into new lands, not speaking the language and showing up. The confidence and bravery they had to mark those footprints into these new countries and find their identities to be ever changing and growing whilst not losing sight of where they came from and what they had to do to get there. Stories, just like humans, need to travel and be shared. My duty is now to be a representative of them.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
How do you convince a Muslim family that you want to go into Acting… That was a tough one, but somehow it worked. I genuinely believe that stories have that impact. When you’re doing it for the right reasons with the right intention, there will always be something others can learn from. I also think it took me an incredibly long time to make the decision of being an actor because I felt there was no room in the industry for me, for who I was and the types of stories I wanted to share.
We never saw many Indian Actors in Hollywood, sure Bollywood was there and thats definitely what my aunties would have wanted but see thats the thing. I didn’t just want Indians to watch stories of Indians, I wanted to be able to bridge that gap between Hollywood and Bollywood, so that the Westernized world can realize that regardless of ethnicity and culture, we share the same stories and feelings of Love or Betrayal or Family, just from a different perspective. And thats the key! That is where you might learn something new about Love or see it in a different light and thats beautiful. Human Nature ain’t really black or white its a whole palette.
We’d love to hear more about your work and what you are currently focused on. What else should we know?
I would say that I dabble in almost everything, from Film and TV, Voice Over, Shakespeare, Contemporary and Experimental Theatre as well as Physical Theatre. I tend to exploit all the platforms for storytelling and see how they may differ. I like to think I have a fearlessness in that sense where I can put myself in Absurd or challenging scenarios and try gain something from it. During my time at Calarts, I was fortunate enough to take part in a show called The Hendrix Project directed by Roger Guenveur Smith which went on to perform at The Under the Radar Festival in New York. It was an incredible performance piece in which the actors played the audience watching Jimi at his 1969 Band of Gypsies Concert at the Fillmore East, very experimental and physically demanding but a wonderful process.
Shortly after graduating I managed to get a guest role on a Netflix show as well as a few commercial gigs and landed a spot on a Disney Jr animated show which was pretty fun, Nephews and nieces were big fans all of a sudden. Then in July, I was asked to join a troupe of actors to take part in an intensive for two weeks with the Grotowski Institute in the woods of Brzezinka Poland, as we do. I love experiencing and collaborating with artists from all over the world and will continue to learn and grow from them. We are the sources of creativity and knowledge for one another.
What moment in your career do you look back most fondly on?
I can’t really pin it down to one moment but I would say I’m pretty proud of myself for making this bold decision to be an artist, an actor, a fellow collaborator. Every opportunity I get to act or tell my part of the story I’m proud, every audition or chance to work with an artist or writer I’m proud. And not in the vain sense, rather that I owed it to myself to pursue this career and follow through as there is growth and wisdom in what we do. So actively living in it, makes me proud everyday and even in the lows, we can’t forget why we are here, what is our mission, and where we came from. For the future, I would love to be able to tell the story of my family, for my children and theirs to see, to never forget and lose the hope and belief my ancestors had to get me to where I am today, I bet that’d make em quite happy.
Contact Info:
- Address: 275 S 3rd Street Burbank
- Phone: 8185713786
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ariyan.kassam/?hl=en
Image Credit:
Wes Klain
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