# Sonal Shah (actress)

Sonal Bhadresh Shah is an American actress and voice artist who may be best known for her recurring role as Dr. Sonja "Sunny" Dey on the series Scrubs.

## Early life and education

Shah was born and raised in Wheaton, Illinois. Her parents, Bhadresh and Mrudula Shah, are Gujarati Jains who moved from Mumbai, Maharashtra, India to the United States in 1970.
Shah graduated from Wheaton Warrenville South High School. She was named the 1998 DuPage County Fair Queen in July 1998.
Shah graduated cum laude from Loyola University in Chicago with a major in theatre, minors in psychology, biology and chemistry, and a concentration in pre-medicine. While a student at Loyola, Shah joined the Alpha Sigma Alpha sorority. "I sincerely planned to go to medical school," Shah told a Wheaton, Illinois newspaper in March 2009. "I love studying science, but I realized that my passion for performing outweighed my passion for wanting to be a doctor."
After graduation, Shah became a staple in the Chicago Theatre Community and performed with The Tony Award Winning Goodman Theatre among others. She is a founding member of Rasaka Theatre Company, which explores South Asian plays and playwrights, and supplemented her acting education at The Moscow Art Theatre School at Harvard University.

## Acting career

Shah moved to Los Angeles in 2006 and began appearing in commercials and sketch comedy. She also has acted with Second City theatres in Chicago and Los Angeles.
In 2009, Shah began appearing on Scrubs as Dr. Sonja "Sunny" Dey, who is one of the young interns newly cast in the show's eighth season. In addition, Shah appeared in the show's webisode series Scrubs: Interns. Shah returns as a guest star on the ninth season of Scrubs, in the fifth episode.
Shah also has a role in the 2009 teen comedy film Ratko: The Dictator's Son, a National Lampoon production.

## Selected filmography

| Year | Title | Production | Role |
| 2004 | World of Weird | Short film | Jenny |
| 2004 | Homecoming | Short film | Mona |
| 2006 | The PTA | Unsold pilot | Waif |
| 2007 | Robot Love | Short film | Silver Robot |
| 2009 | Ratko: The Dictator's Son | | Layla |
| 2009 | Scrubs: Interns | 12 episodes | Sunny |
| 2009 | Scrubs | 8 episodes | Sunny |
| 2011 | Losing Control Danger | | |
| 2011 | The Old Leave Behind | Short film | Jess |
| 2011 | Snooze, Charlie | Short film | Charlie |
| 2011 | Sati Shaves Her Head | Short film | Sati |
| 2011 | Ek Bar Phir, Ek Saath Phir | Short film | Aishwarya |
| 2012 | The First Date | Short film | Amanda |
| 2012 | Incident on Marmont Avenue | Short film | Becca |
| 2012 | ...Or Die | Short film | Parv's Friend |
| 2012 | Squad 85 | 3 episodes | Reporter |
| 2013 | Baby Mentalist | TV short | Reporter |
| 2013 | Back to School Night | Video short | Mrs. Patel |
| 2013 | Black Coffee | Short film | Ms. Flag |
| 2013 | Barrel 28 | Short film | Veronica |
| 2013 | Reunion | Short film | Beth |
| 2013 | Straight Out of the Closet | TV movie | Alecia |
| 2014 | Bro | Short film | Olivia |
| 2014 | Transparent | 1 episode | Female Student |
| 2014 | Spring Training | Short film | Kelly |
| 2015 | The Startup | 1 episode | Sophie |
| 2015 | Miss India America | | Volunteer 1 |
| 2015 | Grace and Sumitra | Unsold pilot | Sumitra |
| 2016 | Showcase: One Network's Search for White Diversity | Video short | Network Executive |
| 2016–2018 | The Powerpuff Girls | 3 episodes | Sapna (voice), Additional Voices |
| 2016 | New Girl | 1 episode | Flight Attendant |
| 2016 | The Day Of | Short film | Chandra |
| 2013 | Anarkali Blossoms | Short film | Satya |
| 2015 | Limitless Love | Short film | Dr. Vicky |
| 2016 | Princess Rehab | Short film | Jamie |
| 2017 | Mike Boy | | Darsha |
| 2020 | Definition Please | | Dr. Ali |