Arguably one of the finest actors to have graced the cinema screen ever, Krishna Pandit Bhanji, but better known as Ben Kingsley is an English theatre artist and film actor. Best remembered for playing the titular role in the biographical movie about Mahatma Gandhi, Sir Kingsley won not only wide appreciation from the critics and the audience but also won many awards including an Academy Award, a BAFTA Award, a Golden Globe Award and a Grammy Award.
His list of achievements also includes a Knighthood, for his outstanding contribution to the British film industry, Kingsley was made a Knight Bachelor at the Buckingham Palace in 2002. In 2010, he was awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. The veteran superstar, over the years, in his illustrious career has won all the major awards and laurels that an actor can possibly win.
Born in Yorkshire, Kingsley grew up in Pendlebury, Manchester and he was educated at Manchester Grammar School, where one of his classmates was the famed actor Robert Powell. Kingsley got involved with dramatics while he was studying at the Pendelton College and he made his professional debut in a theatre with London West End theatre at the age of 23. During one of his performances, Kingsley was spotted by British film producer and manager Dick James, who offered Kingsley to mold into a pop star, but Kingsley refused the offer and instead chose to join the prestigious Royal Shakespeare Company after auditioning before Trevor Nunn.
After joining the prestigious theatre group, over the next 15 years, Kingsley devoted himself completely to working in theatre. He made his Broadway debut in 1971 with RSC, he later played Mosca in Peter Hall's production Volpone for the Royal National Theatre. After working in theatre and being successful at it, Kingsley eventually moved to acting in films and his maiden appearance on the silver screen was with Fear Is the Key, which released in 1972. However, it was in 1982, a decade after his debut that he shot to fame globally with a stellar performance in one of the most critically acclaimed films of all time Gandhi.
After the success of Gandhi, Sir Kingsley never looked back and over the years he has delivered several hits and memorable performances. He has been part of many commercially hit and critically acclaimed films like Bugsy (1991), Schindler's List (1993), Sexy Beast (2000), House of Sand and Fog (2003), Shutter Island (2010), Iron Man 3 (2013), Exodus: Gods and Kings (2014) and War Machine (2017).
Apart from films and theatre, the veteran actor has also worked extensively in TV. Since his debut on the silver screen with Pardon the Expression (1966), he has worked in more than 40 TV series' and TV films.