Rokhsaneh Ghawam-Shahidi

Rokhsaneh Ghawam-Shahidi is an English actress. She started her career as part of Contact Young Actors Company in 2004 and went on to work for Peskar Productions as a drama workshop leader within the Oldham and Bolton communities. Her theatre credits include East is East, Janus (for West Yorkshire Playhouse), Freshly Scratched (for the Battersea Arts Centre) and Rafta, Rafta... at the National Theatre. She has appeared on British television in shows such as Sinchronicity and Emmerdale, playing the part of Leyla Harding from 2008 to 2011. She has also acted in radio plays, e.g. Nadeem Aslam's Maps for Lost Lovers. From November 2012 through to January 2013 she played the role of Shahrazad in the Manchester Library Theatre Company performances of Arabian Nights at the Lowry Theatre in Salford, near Manchester.^[1] Shahidi returned to Emmerdale on 25 December 2013, with Leyla turning up to her sister Alicia's wedding to her, Leyla's, ex-fiance David.^{[citation needed]}

Personal life

Rokhsaneh was born to an Iranian father and an English mother, and grew up in Whalley Range in Manchester. She became a vegetarian at the age of 8 after her mother told her of cultures around the world where people did not eat animals. She has been a vegan since the age of 21 initially seeking to cure her acne problem by removing dairy from her diet. She subsequently discovered how animals are treated in the dairy industry which reaffirmed her decision.^[2]

References

External links

• Rokhsaneh Ghawam-Shahidi at the Internet Movie Database
• National Theatre company profile