| Zenobia Shroff | |
| Birth Date: | 27 May 1965 |
| Birth Place: | Bombay, India (present-day Mumbai) |
| Citizenship: | United States |
| Education: | Circle in the Square Theatre School |
| Occupation: | Actress, comedian |
| Years Active: | 1989–present |
| Known For: | Muneeba Khan in Ms. Marvel[1] |
Zenobia Shroff (born May 27, 1965) is an Indian-born American actress. Shroff has been an actress, writer, teaching artist and sketch comedian for over 30 years and she is known for her role in the 2017 film The Big Sick,[2] and as Muneeba Khan in the Disney+ TV series Ms. Marvel and The Marvels.
Shroff grew up in a Parsi family in South Bombay, in what is now known as Mumbai.[3]
Shroff began her professional career at age sixteen as a commercial print model. After seven successful years as a model, she switched to acting. She got her acting start in Mumbai under the mentorship of Pearl Padamsee. She then moved to study acting at New York City's Circle in the Square Theatre School.[4] [5] Soon after, she appeared at the Broadway Castillo Theatre, where she played several roles such as Nora in Henrik Ibsen's A Doll's House to German avant-gardist Heiner Müller.[6] She also performed in Erotic Adventures in Venice at the La MaMa Experimental Theatre Club and in Milan Kundera's Jacques and His Master.
In 2007, she was cast as Roxanne in Little Zizou, written and directed by Sooni Taraporevala. For that role she was nominated as best actress at the New York Indian film festival. A few years later, she appeared in When Harry Tries to Marry, an American romantic comedy film. She followed that up with her first Bollywood film, Ek Main Aur Ekk Tu alongside Imran Khan. The film received critical acclaim.[7] Her solo show, Show How to Succeed as an Ethnically Ambiguous Actor premiered at the Planet Connections Festival in June 2016. For that performance she has been nominated as Outstanding Solo Performer.[8]
Shroff has been a lifelong dancer, starting with the classical Indian temple dance, Bharat Natyam for several years and moving onto jazz and modern as a young adult. She is a founding company member of the Shiamak Davar dance company with whom she toured nationally doing musical theatre including playing Anita in West Side Story, Cabaret, and A Chorus Line.[9]
She has performed stand-up at the Guild Gallery, the Indo American Arts Council,[10] Don't Tell Mama, UCB and the South Asian International Performing Arts Festival. She went on to perform her show, Show How to Succeed as an Ethnically Ambiguous Actor, with over 30 characters in and off-Broadway at the Castillo Theatre in a full run in the summer of 2017.[11] Also in 2017, she was cast as Kumail Nanjiani's mother in The Big Sick, produced by Judd Apatow. The cast was nominated for a Screen Actors Guild Awards in 2018.[12]
She has appeared in the American medical drama series The Resident, American political drama television series Madam Secretary, and a recurring role as Priya Ullah in seasons 4 and 5 of The Affair.[13] In 2020, she voiced one of the many counselors named “Jerry”, in the Disney-Pixar film Soul.
In 2022, she was cast as Muneeba Khan in the Marvel Studios series Ms. Marvel on Disney+. She reprised the role in the 2023 film The Marvels.[14]
She holds a master's degree in Psychology.[15]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1989 | Percy | Vera | ||
| 2008 | Little Zizou | Roxanne | [16] | |
| 2010 | When Harry Tries to Marry | Geeta Shankar | ||
| 2012 | Ek Main Aur Ekk Tu | Nicole Braganza | ||
| 2016 | Misaligned | Nadia's Mother | Short film | |
| 2017 | The Big Sick | Sharmeen | ||
| 2019 | (t)here | Geeta (Mother) | Short film | [17] |
| 2020 | Save Yourselves! | Su's Mom | Voice role | [18] [19] |
| 2020 | Soul | Counselor Jerry | Voice role | [20] |
| 2021 | 7 Days | Rita's Mom | [21] | |
| 2023 | The Marvels | Muneeba Khan | [22] | |
| TBA | TBA |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018–2019 | The Resident | Himaya Pravesh | 3 episodes | ||
| 2018 | The Affair | Priya Ullah | 6 episodes | ||
| 2018 | The Greatest American Hero | Leena | TV film | ||
| 2018 | Madam Secretary | Indian Prime Minister Vanya Kharti | Episode: "E Pluribus Unum" | ||
| 2022 | Ms. Marvel | Muneeba Khan | Main role (6 episodes) | [23] |