I like the idea of being caught between things, always being a bit of an outsider, having an outside eye on things – almost like a Shakespearean fool. Riz Ahmed Read Quote
My music is a very personal reflection of me, whereas, acting a role, that’s a reflection of another character. Riz Ahmed Read Quote
I go to a lot of stand-up comedy. I find more inspiration from observational stuff than from rap. Riz Ahmed Read Quote
Post 9/11 Blues’ is an observational satire about the surreal circus of fear at that time. It’s a generational thing. Riz Ahmed Read Quote
I’m not in a ‘starry’ position to be able to pick and choose, but I am interested in telling stories of substance with great directors – that’s my only guiding principle. Riz Ahmed Read Quote
I’m an actor. Since I was a teenager, I have had to play different characters, negotiating the cultural expectations of a Pakistani family, Brit-Asian rudeboy culture, and a scholarship to private school. The fluidity of my own personal identity on any given day was further compounded by the changing labels assigned to Asians in general. Riz Ahmed Read Quote
As a minority, no sooner do you learn to polish and cherish one chip on your shoulder than it’s taken off you and swapped for another. The jewellery of your struggles is forever on loan, like the Koh-i-Noor diamond in the crown jewels. Riz Ahmed Read Quote
Rehearsing a scene beds a role into you. But sometimes, if you over-rehearse it without unearthing any new meaning in it, you can suddenly forget your lines. You realise that you are on a stage, not in the real world. The scene’s emotional power, and your immersion in it, disappears. Riz Ahmed Read Quote
It’s interesting that we assign the label ‘political’ to art that doesn’t just fit a mould of status quo. Is ‘Downton Abbey’ not political? That’s political! Every piece of art offers a perspective on the world. And what is politics if not a perspective on the world? ‘Downton Abbey’ is about class. It’s also about race. Riz Ahmed Read Quote
