Naseeruddin Shah is regarded as a stalwart in Indian cinema. He is also an outstanding actor in English and Hindi theatre. He is known to be a soft-spoken and sensitive actor and is the master of slight gestures to delineate psychological nuances. Shah displays complete control whether in realism or comedy, and changes totally according to the character`s needs. He is equally comfortable in cinema and theatres. He maintains a laudable balance between the two media, among the few crossover actors to continue regular theatre activities despite busy shooting schedules. In movies, too, he works in both commercial and art films, retaining a reputation among both critics and mass audiences.

Early Life of Naseeruddin Shah
Naseeruddin Shah was born on 20 July 1950 in Barabanki, Uttar Pradesh to a Muslim family. His father was an Army Officer. He completed his schooling from St. Anselm`s Ajmer. He completed his higher education from St Joseph`s College, Nainital and Aligarh Muslim University. He is trained as an actor at the National School of Drama (NSD) and the Film and Television Institute, Pune. At the NSD, Ebrahim Alkazi`s direction equipped him with skills to portray various kinds of characters. He joined the NSD Repertory in 1972.

Theatre Career of Naseeruddin Shah
Naseeruddin Shah moved to Mumbai in 1973 and began working with Majma and Theatre Unit. He began his career in Majma`s production of Lai`s Coffee House Mein Intezar in 1973. He acted under Satyadev Dubey as director for Theatre Unit in Dubeys Apratyashit in 1978 and Mahesh Elkunchwar`s Pratibimb in 1987. He formed his own group, Motley, in 1979 to stage English theatre. Its successes included Beckett`s Waiting for Godot in 1979 and Endgame in 1982. He also staged Neil Simon`s The Odd Couple in 1986, Herman Wouk`s The Caine Mutiny Court Martial in 1989, Shakespeare`s `Caesar` in 1990 and Mahatma vs. Gandhi in 1997. This was translated from Ajit Dalvi`s Gandhi Viruddha Gandhi.

Film Career of Naseeruddin Shah
Naseeruddin Shah`s finest cine credits covers a vast range. It includes Shyam Benegal`s Bhumika in 1976, Sai Paranjpye`s Sparsh in 1979, Govind Nihalani`s Akrosh in 1980, and Saeed Mirza`s Albert Pinto Ko Gussa Kyon Ata Hai in 1980. The list also includes some more as Ketan Mehta`s Bhavni Bhavai in 1980, Rabindra Dharmaraj`s Chakra in 1980, Ashok Ahuja`s Adharshila in 1981, Shekhar Kapur`s Masum in 1982, Paranjpye`s Katha in 1982. He made his prominent mark through his impeccable acting skills in both parallel as well as mainstream cinema. His Bollywood flick Hum Paanch in 1980 made him active in mainstream cinema which was followed by other successful films such as Karma, Ijaazat, Hero Hiralal and others. The actor also marked his presence in Malayalam cinema with the film Ponthan Mada for which he received critical acclamations. His other notable films include Hey Ram, Sarfarosh, A Wednesday, Monsoon Wedding, Iqbal, The Dirty Picture, John Day, Dedh Ishqiya and many more. Over years Naseeruddin Shah has proved his commendable versatility through the portrayal of varied characters in different movies. He made his debut in Pakistani film industry with the film Khuda Ke Liye in which he appeared in a cameo role. He has also ventured in the field of film direction and marked his directional debut with the 2006 film Yun Hota To Kya Hota.

Other Ventures of Naseeruddin Shah
Naseeruddin Shah has formed a theatre group along with Benjamin Gilani and Tom Alter, which is known as Motley Productions. He enacted in an eponymous television series aired on DD National, based on the life of Mirza Ghalib, under the direction of Gulzar. In another eponymous television series Bharat Ek Khoj, he played the role of the Maratha King Shivaji. He also appeared in the television show Tarkash, aired on Zee TV. Naseeruddin Shah was the first celebrity actor who played the role of narrator in the kid`s audio book series Karadi Tales. He has also been honoured with the lifetime membership of International Film And Television Club of Asian Academy of Film and Television.

Personal Life of Naseeruddin Shah
Naseeruddin Shah first married Manara Sikri, the step sister of acclaimed actress Surekha Sikri. From this marriage he has a daughter named Heeba Shah. In 1982, after the demise of his first wife, he married actress and his co-star Ratna Pathak Shah. From his second marriage, he has two sons Imaad and Vivaan.

Achievements of Naseeruddin Shah
Naseeruddin Shah has been honoured with Padma Shri, India`s fourth highest civilian award, in 1987 and Padma Bhushan, India`s third highest civilian award, in 2003. He has won three National Film Awards for his movies Sparsh, Paar and Iqbal in the years 1979, 1984 and 2006 respectively. Apart from these he has also bagged 18 Filmfare Awards for various movies. In Venice film festival, the actor received The Volpi Cup (Award for Best Actor) for his film Paar in 1984. He has also been the recipient of Sangeet Natak Akademi Award andInternational Indian Film Academy Award for his movie Sarfarosh, both in the year 2000.

Filmography of Naseeruddin Shah