# Ahad Raza Mir

Ahad Raza Mir (Urdu: احد رضا میر; born 29 September 1993) is a Pakistani-Canadian actor who primarily works in Urdu-language television. Mir is the recipient of several awards, including four Hum Awards and a Lux Style Award.
The son of actor Asif Raza Mir, Mir pursued Fine Arts at the University of Calgary. He subsequently worked as an actor in several theatre productions in Canada made his acting debut with a supporting role in the social-based Sammi (2017). He rose to prominence with the romantic drama Yaqeen Ka Safar, which proved to be a breakthrough for him, earning him critical acclaim and a Lux Style Award for Best Actor. The following year he starred in the commercially successful aerial combat-war film Parwaaz Hai Junoon. His performances in the ISPR-based ensemble drama Ehd-e-Wafa, the thriller Yeh Dil Mera (both 2019) and the comedy Hum Tum (2022), earned him Lux Style Award for Best Actor nomination.
Mir has since starred in the Indo-Pak conflict based web-series Dhoop Ki Deewar (2021), the American series Resident Evil (2022) and the British series World on Fire (2023).

## Early life and family

Mir was born into a Kashmiri family in Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan. He is the son of Asif Raza Mir, a veteran actor and producer of the Pakistani film and television industry. Mir's paternal grandfather, Raza Mir, was a filmmaker who also served as cinematographer for the first ever Pakistani film, Teri Yaad (1948). His mother Samra Raza Mir is a musician who was part of Pakistan's first female band, Symphony, formed in 1993. He has a younger brother, Adnan Raza Mir, who has launched his acting career in 2023 with the comedy drama Fairy Tale on Hum TV. Singer and actor Haroon Shahid is his cousin.
Mir attended a Performing Arts High School, and graduated from the University of Calgary with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree.

## Acting career
### Beginnings and stage roles (2010–2016)

Mir started his career in 2010 at age 17, playing a brief role as the son of Sania Saeed and Faisal Rehman in the Hum TV's romantic drama Khamosiyan. Mir started his career on stage, performing, directing and writing in several musicals and plays across Canada. Mir wanted to move to Toronto, but instead decided to go back to Pakistan to work in films and television.

### Yaqeen Ka Safar and rise to prominence (2017–present)

In 2017, Mir started auditioning for Hum TV's production house MD Productions, and was cast as a leading role in Yaqeen Ka Safar where he played Dr. Asfand Yaar, a grief-stricken brother alongside Sajal Aly and Hira Mani. He then had a supporting role in the social drama Sammi opposite Mawra Hocane. His performance earned him Lux Style Award for Best Actor, and won three Hum Awards including the Hum Award for Best Actor. Reviewing Yakeen Ka Safar, Sadaf Pervez of Express Tribune noted that Mir "shines" with his performance.
Coming from an influential film making family, Ahad was accused of nepotism. Responding to such claims Mir stated that he wanted “people to take [him], as an actor, very seriously and that he is “here to give Pakistan some good cinema and TV”.
In 2018, Mir made his film debut with Haseeb Hassan's military-drama Parwaaz Hay Junoon, co-starring Hamza Ali Abbasi and Hania Aamir, which was released on Eid al-Adha. Mir replaced Osman Khalid Butt in a role of Flight Lieutenant Saad, who opted out due to his other commitments. The same year, Mir reunited with Sajal Aly and Mawra Hocane in Hum TV's Mohammed Ehteshamuddin-directed period drama Aangan where he played a poet, Jameel. The series was one of the most hyped dramas of 2018 but it has been a huge disappointment which in result was panned by audience.
In 2019, The Shakespeare Company, in a joint production with Vertigo Theatre in Canada, signed Mir to play Hamlet in their production becoming one of the first South Asian actor to play the role professionally in Canada. His performance won him the Betty Mitchell Award for Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Drama.
In the same year, he played an army officer Saad Faraz in ISPR based Ehd-e-Wafa opposite Alizeh Shah. He then starred Amaanullah Khan opposite Sajal Ali in suspense thriller Yeh Dil Mera. For both these performances, he received Lux Style Award for Best TV Actor - Critics nominations. Mir made his web debut co-starring Sajal Ali in Dhoop Ki Deewar as Vishal Malhotra. The series was released on ZEE5.
After a hiatus of three-years, Mir played a college chemistry student Adam Sultan in the 2022 Ramadan special Hum Tum, opposite Ramsha Khan. The series and his portrayal was praised across Pakistan and India. His chemistry with Khan was appreciated and they won the Hum Award for Best Onscreen Couple Popular and he received nomination for Hum Award for Best Actor Popular.
The same year, he made his Netflix debut with the series Resident Evil, as Arjun Batra. He next appeared in British series World on Fire, as Rajib Pal. Mir will next appear in Pakistan's first Netflix original Jo Bachay Hain Sang Samait Lo.
In December 2024, Ahad played the lead role in Hum TV's Meem Se Mohabbat along with Dananeer Mobeen. Mir portrayed Talha, a single father of a traumatised young child.

## Other work
### Music

In Canada, Mir has mostly been involved in musical theatre, being the first South Asian to win a "Best Actor in a Musical" award at the Canadian Critics’ Awards. He can play a number of musical instruments, including guitar, bass guitar, drums and keyboards.
In 2018, Mir made his Coke Studio debut as a featured artist in its eleventh-season, where he performed the song "Ko Ko Korina" with Momina Mustehsan. Their rendition of the classic song was widely criticized. Within a few days of the video being released on YouTube, it became the most-disliked video in the music show's history.

### Production

In 2018, Mir announced that he turned producer for an upcoming movie called Kalasha, about the Kalash people and featuring actor Aijaz Aslam.

## Personal life

On 6 June 2019, Mir got engaged to his co-star and actress Sajal Aly, and married her in a private intimate ceremony on 14 March 2020 in Abu Dhabi. The couple allegedly got separated and eventually divorced in March 2022.

## Media image

Mir is considered one of Pakistan’s highest paid actors. In 2017, he was placed eighth in the list of most searched celebrities on Google of 2017 in Pakistan. Images Dawn named Mir in their "Standout performances: Male" list of 2019. Mir has been placed in the Hello Pakistan's HOT100 list, in the "Trailblazers" category, in the year 2020 and 2022. The actor serves as an ambassador for a number of brands including Nestlé, Mountain Dew, Xiaomi, Coca-Cola and Lays, among others. In 2021, he was appointed the ambassador of the Pakistan Pavilion, at the Expo 2020 Dubai. Mir was placed at 42nd position in Eastern Eye's "Top 50 Global Asian Celebrities" list of 2023.

## Filmography
### Films

| Year | Title | Role | Director | Notes |
| 2018 | Parwaaz Hai Junoon | Saad | Haseeb Hassan | |

### Television

| Year | Title | Role | Director | Notes |
| 2010 | Khamoshiyan | Wasif | Babar Javed | Cameo appearance |
| 2017 | Sammi | Salaar | Saife Hassan | |
| 2017 | Yaqeen Ka Safar | Dr. Asfandyar "Asfi" Ali Khan | Shahzad Kashmiri | |
| 2018 | Aangan | Jameel | Mohammed Ehteshamuddin | |
| 2018 | Coke Studio | Featured Artist | Noori | Featured artist in "Hum Dekhenge" and "Ko Ko Korina" |
| 2019 | Ehd-e-Wafa | Captain Saad Faraz | Saife Hassan | |
| 2019 | Yeh Dil Mera | Amaanullah Khan | Aehsun Talish | |
| 2022 | Hum Tum | Adam Sultan | Danish Nawaz | |
| 2023 | Fairy Tale | Himself | Ali Hassan | Special appearance |
| 2024 | 9th Hum Awards | Host | | |
| 2024 | Meem Se Mohabbat | Talha Ahmed | Ali Hassan | |

### Web series

| Year | Title | Role | Network | Notes |
| 2021 | Dhoop Ki Deewar | Vishal Malhotra | ZEE5 | Indian series |
| 2022 | Resident Evil | Arjun Batra | Netflix | American series |
| 2023 | World on Fire | Rajib Pal | BBC One | British series |
| TBA | Jo Bachay Hain Sang Samait Lo † | Sikandar Sheheryar | Netflix | Filming |

### Theatre

| Year | Production | Role | Theater |
| 2014 | West Side Story | Tony | U of C Operetta Company |
| 2014 | A Picture with a Bull | Ruben | Common Ground Festival |
| 2014 | The Tempest | Caliban | Theatre Calgary |
| 2014 | Romeo and Juliet | Tybalt | The Shakespeare Company |
| 2014 | Naughty But Nice | Victor | Forte Musical Theatre Guild |
| 2015 | Macbeth | Lennox | The Shakespeare Company |
| 2015 | Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo | Musa | Search Tower Company |
| 2019 | Hamlet | Hamlet | The Shakespeare Company |
| 2023 | Hamlet | Hamlet | Rose Theatre Brampton |

## Awards and nominations

| Year | Award | Category | Work | Result |
| 2016 | Calgary Theatre Critics' Awards | Best Actor in a Musical | Naughty But Nice | Won |
| 2018 | Lux Style Awards | Best Television Actor | Yaqeen Ka Safar | Won |
| 2018 | Hum Awards | Best Actor Popular | Yaqeen Ka Safar | Won |
| 2018 | Hum Awards | Best Actor Critics | Yaqeen Ka Safar | Nominated |
| 2018 | Hum Awards | Onscreen Couple Popular (with Sajal Aly) | Yaqeen Ka Safar | Won |
| 2018 | Hum Awards | Best Television Sensation | Yaqeen Ka Safar | Won |
| 2019 | Betty Mitchell Award | Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Drama | Hamlet | Won |
| 2020 | Pakistan International Screen Awards | Best Television Actor | Aangan | Nominated |
| 2020 | Hum Style Awards | Most Stylish Film Actor | — | Won |
| 2021 | Lux Style Awards | Best TV Actor - Viewers | Yeh Dil Mera | Nominated |
| 2021 | Lux Style Awards | Best TV Actor - Critics | Yeh Dil Mera | Nominated |
| 2021 | Lux Style Awards | Best TV Actor - Critics | Ehd-e-Wafa | Nominated |
| 2021 | Lux Style Awards | Best TV Actor - Viewers | Ehd-e-Wafa | Nominated |
| 2024 | Hum Awards | Best Actor Popular | Hum Tum | Nominated |
| 2024 | Hum Awards | Best Onscreen Couple Popular (with Ramsha Khan) | Hum Tum | Won |