Agam Darshi
Agamdeep Darshi (born December 23, 1987) is a British-Canadian actress, director, writer and producer.
Early life
Agam Darshi was born in the city of Birmingham in England, the United Kingdom; to Sikh parents of Indian Punjabi descent.[1] At a very young age she and her family has emigrated to Canada, where she grew up mainly in Montreal, in Ottawa, and in Vancouver.[2] At the age of 14 she left home and relocated to Calgary, Alberta; which assisted her with the initial steps to pursue a career of acting. Darshi studied theatre and fine arts at the University of Calgary, and earned a degree in photography.
Career
Darshi has made appearances in over 25 television productions along with appearing in over a dozen films. She is best known for her roles in Tru Calling, The Dead Zone, The L-Word, and as Laura in the horror film Final Destination 3. She appeared in a recurring role on the Canadian teen-drama television series renegadepress.com. From 2009 to 2011, Darshi appeared in the television series Sanctuary. She was part of the main cast in seasons two and three and had a recurring role in season four.
At the 2013 Leo Awards, Darshi won Best Supporting Performance by a Female in a Motion Picture for her role in the feature Crimes of Mike Recket.[3] Along with fellow South Asian actress Patricia Isaac, she co-founded the Vancouver International South Asian Film Festival (VISAFF).[4] She has also appeared as Ruby Shivani in season 2 of TV serial You Me Her.
In January 2021, Darshi principal photography on her directorial debut film, titled Donkeyhead, in Regina, Saskatchewan.[5] The film, in which Darshi also played the lead character, premiered at the 2021 Mosaic International South Asian Film Festival.[6]
Darshi is also a producer, director,[7] writer, screenwriter, playwright, artist, and graphic designer.
Personal life
Darshi is married to Canadian actor Juan Riedinger; and they have twin sons.[8] She lives in Los Angeles.[9]
Filmography
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | Pavane for a Dead Skunk | Saviour Woman | Short film |
| renegadepress.com | Hema / Hemma | 3 episodes | |
| Tru Calling | Dawn Pullman | Episode: "Two Pair" | |
| Touching Evil | Lakshmi | Episode: "Grief" | |
| Perfect Romance | Smitten student | TV movie | |
| Pink Ludoos | Pria Dhaliwal | ||
| 2004–2008 | Stargate Atlantis | Novo / Athosian #2 | 2 episodes |
| 2005 | Reefer Madness | Female Dancer | |
| Stranger in My Bed | Hotel Clerk | TV movie | |
| Best Friends | Sales Clerk | TV movie | |
| Zixx: Level Two | Jayda | 8 episodes | |
| 2005–2009 | The L Word | Waitress | 4 episodes |
| 2006 | Final Destination 3 | Laura | |
| Double Cross | Lorraine | TV movie | |
| Supernatural | Jill | Episode: "Hell House" | |
| Civic Duty | Nurse | ||
| 49th & Main | Rajanpreet Johal | TV series | |
| The Dead Zone | Tahmina Mahmud | Episode: "Articles of Faith" | |
| Snakes on a Plane | Dell Girl | ||
| Deck the Halls | News Producer | ||
| Masters of Horror | Travel Agent | Episode: "The Screwfly Solution" | |
| Under the Sycamore Tree | Allison | ||
| 2007 | Good Luck Chuck | Female Wedding Guest | |
| Kyle XY | Pretty Girl | Episode: "The List Is Life" | |
| Butterfly on a Wheel | APM Secretary | ||
| Psych | Dwyer | Episode: "Meat Is Murder, But Murder Is Also Murder" | |
| American Venus | Ki | ||
| The Haunting of Sorority Row | Rachel | TV movie | |
| Reaper | Bubbly Employee | Episode: "Magic" | |
| 2008 | Poison Ivy: The Secret Society | Nadia | TV movie |
| Robson Arms | Sara | Episode: "Prince of Nigeria" | |
| NYC: Tornado Terror | Dog Walker #2 | TV movie | |
| The Guard | Darma Singh | 6 episodes | |
| Bollywood Beckons | Neeru Singh | Short film | |
| Past Lies | Claudia | TV movie | |
| 2009 | Playing for Keeps | Maya | TV movie |
| Watchmen | On Location Reporter | ||
| Impact | Ella Barlow | TV miniseries, Episode: "#1.2" | |
| Almost Audrey | Stephanie | TV movie | |
| Excited | Safira | ||
| Stargate Universe | Dr. Sonja Damji | Episode: "Air: Part 1" | |
| 2012 | Aparna Tsurutani | ||
| 2009–2011 | Sanctuary | Kate Freelander | 37 episodes |
| 2010 | Dan for Mayor | Brianna | 12 episodes |
| A Night for Dying Tigers | Debbie | ||
| Fathers & Sons | Agam | ||
| 2011 | Normal | Nancy | TV movie |
| Endgame | Tara | Episode: "Bless This Union" | |
| White Collar Poet | Air | 2 episodes | |
| 2012 | County | Talaikha | TV movie |
| In Their Skin | Nurse | ||
| The Possession | Court Representative | ||
| Crimes of Mike Recket | Jasleen Recket | ||
| Ring of Fire | Audrey Leems / Audrey Lee | TV miniseries, 2 episodes | |
| 2013 | Arrow | Anastasia | Episode: "Betrayal" |
| Played | Khali Bhatt (Main) | 13 episodes | |
| Reunion | Her | Short film | |
| 2014 | Bates Motel | Deputy Patty Lin | 2 episodes |
| 2015 | Perception | Nasim Shah | Episode: "Mirror" |
| 2016 | Brain on Fire | Dr. Khan | |
| 2017 | Colossal | Ash | Film |
| Chokeslam | Dr. Hayden | Film | |
| Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency | Wakti Wapnasi | 4 episodes | |
| You Me Her | Ruby Shivani | Recurring role (season 2) | |
| 2018 | Kingsway | Megan | |
| 2019 | The Magicians | Janet Pluchinsky | 2 episodes |
| 2020 | Funny Boy | Radha | Nominated for the Canadian Screen Award for Best Supporting Actress at the 9th Canadian Screen Awards |
| 2021 | The Flash | Mona Taylor / Queen | 4 episodes |
| Donkeyhead | Mona Ghuman | Also director | |
| 2023 | She Talks to Strangers | Aran | |
| 2024–present | Sight Unseen | Sunny | Main cast |
References
- ^ Ip, Stephanie (14 July 2011). "Casting talent over colour". 24 Hours Vancouver. Archived from the original on 8 March 2016. Retrieved 14 December 2013.
Agam Darshi's on-screen husband wore a turban but no beard. The problem? Sikh culture dictates men keep their hair uncut - something the filmmakers overlooked. "It's just not being respectful to the actual culture itself," said the Vancouver actor. Darshi's story is indicative of a larger challenge in Hollywood North. While roles are few, even more rare are those that don't cast ethnic actors like Darshi into stereotypes.
- ^ "Snakes on an iPod Girl Interview". snakesonablog.com. 15 June 2006. Archived from the original on 17 June 2009. Retrieved 29 April 2015.
- ^ "VanCity Buzz Entertainment: "An Interview with Played Star Agam Darshi", Oct. 2013". Archived from the original on 12 March 2017. Retrieved 14 December 2013.
- ^ Ip, Stephanie (14 July 2011). "Casting talent over colour". 24 Hours Vancouver. Archived from the original on 8 March 2016. Retrieved 14 December 2013.
The whole festival is about opening up the perceptions of mainstream audiences so they can see South Asian and other minorities as being part of their world," she said. "We definitely are South Asian, but we live and think of ourselves as very mainstream actors."
- ^ Dino-Ray Ramos (21 January 2021). "'Funny Boy' Actress Agam Darshi Sets Feature Directorial Debut With Family Dramedy 'Donkeyhead'". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on 21 January 2021. Retrieved 21 January 2021.
- ^ Victoria Ahearn, "In Brief: Agam Darshi's Donkeyhead to open MISAFF". Playback, November 26, 2021.
- ^ Furminger, Sabrina (29 August 2013). "Vancouver actresses create their own film industry". WeVancouver. Archived from the original on 14 December 2013.
Darshi (who co-starred on Sanctuary and recently won a Leo Award for her role in Crimes of Mike Recket) directed, while Lowe and Sidhu shared producing responsibilities. It was the first time any of these experienced actresses had attempted any of these weighty roles.
- ^ Gee, Dana (2 December 2020). "Agam Darshi's long ago dream is now a reality on the screen". Vancouver Sun. Retrieved 22 January 2023.
- ^ Zornosa, Laura (26 January 2022). "Their Characters Are Stuck, but the Filmmakers Are Anything but". The New York Times.
