Meet the cast of ITV’s Next of Kin
This new thriller tells the story of a British Pakistani family who feel the shockwaves of a bombing in London and a murder on the other side of the world
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Enzo Cilenti – Detective Townsend
Who does he play? Detective Townsend visits the Shirani family to break the news of Kareem’s disappearance. But his interest in the case does not stop there.
Where have I seen him before? Enzo Cilenti has a list of TV and movie roles as long as your arm. He played Aubrey Hackett in The Last Tycoon, Yezzan zo Qaggaz in Game of Thrones, and Talbot in Tom Hiddleston movie High Rise. In Wolf Hall he played Antonio Bonvisi, in Jekyll & Hyde he played Captain Dance, and in The Theory of Everything he was Kip Thorne. In short: he’s a familiar face.
Shabana Azmi – Mrs Shirani
Who does she play? Mrs Shirani is a mother of four who lives with Mona and Guy in West London. She came from Pakistan with her young family many years ago and appears to be a proud, traditional older woman. Witty and smart, she is often underestimated by her family – but she is proud and fiercely protective of her children and grandchildren. She knows her mind.
Where have I seen her before? Shabani Azmi is one of the most acclaimed film actresses in India, having led the Parallel Cinema movement in the 70s. She has appeared in over 120 Hindi and Bengali movies over her long career and has received a ton of awards. In the West she may be best known for the Indian-Canadian romantic movie Fire (1996), where she played Radha.
Farzana Dua Elahe – Rahana Shirani
Who does she play? Rahana is Kareem’s wife, and the mother of his daughter.
Where have I seen her before? Farzana Dua Elahe played Parveen Abbasi in EastEnders, before she disappeared to Washington DC to study for a PhD. Since then she’s been in Into the Badlands, Broadchurch (as a teacher) and Code of a Killer. She’s also a DJ on the UK club scene.
Claire Skinner – ACC Vivien Barnes
Who does she play? Assistant Chief Constable Vivien Barnes is dealing with the terror attack – a bomb in London. She knows Guy.
Where have I seen her before? Yes, that’s the mum Sue Brockman from Outnumbered. Claire Skinner has also starred in Homefront, Critical, Power Monkeys (like her co-star Archie Panjabi) and Scream Street.
Kiran Sonia Sawar – Ani Shirani
Who does she play? The youngest of the Shirani siblings, 21-year-old Ani brings her “roommate” (girlfriend) to Kareem’s welcome home party. She is fun and bright and loving towards her family.
Where have I seen her before? Newcomer Kiran Sonia Sawar has only been acting for a couple of years but she’s already made a big impact. She was in the acclaimed TV movie Murdered by My Father as Salma, appeared in The Boy with the Topknot, and played Shazia in the Black Mirror episode Crocodile.
Mawaan Rizwan – Omar Shirani
Who does he play? Omar is the final Shirani sibling – he’s cheeky and jokes around with his family. He has a little daughter, but has split from her mother and struggles financially (though he can find money for tattoos).
Where have I seen him before? Actor, writer and comedian Mawaan Rizwan first rose to fame on YouTube, gaining 85,000 subscribers with his sketches and funny characters. Like his Next of Kin co-star Kiran Sonia Sawar, Rizwan recently appeared in Murdered By My Father, playing Imi.
