Haiesha Natwarlal Mistry (born 16 August 1993) is an English actress. She is known for portraying the role of Yasmine Maalik in the Channel 4 soap opera Hollyoaks from 2017 to 2024.

Haiesha Mistry
Mistry in 2023
Born
Haiesha Natwarlal Mistry

(1993-08-16) 16 August 1993 (age 30)
Alma materUniversity of Salford
OccupationActress
Years active2017–present
TelevisionHollyoaks

Life and career edit

Mistry was born on 16 August 1993 in Tameside, Lancashire, and is of Indian descent.[1][2] She attended Droylsden Academy and Clarendon Sixth Form College before going on to study performance and media practices, followed by drama and theatre at the University of Salford, graduating from the latter with a BA (Hons).[3][4] She previously worked as a jobbing actor and worked five jobs to fund acting auditions.[5][6] She has appeared in numerous stage productions including Climate of Fear, Mr and Mrs Khan, Michael Rosen's Bear Hunt Chocolate Cake and Bad Things Interactive Experience.[7]

In April 2017, Mistry joined the cast of the Channel 4 soap opera Hollyoaks. Her character Yasmine Maalik was introduced as a "loud and flamboyant" teenager and following the announcement of her casting, Mistry said she was "so excited to be joining Hollyoaks as this [was her] first television credit" and that she was "looking forward to portraying [her] new character.[7][8][9][10] A family was later built for the character, with the introduction of Yasmine's mother Misbah (Harvey Virdi), sister Farrah (Krupa Pattani) and brothers Imran (Ijaz Rana) and Sami (Rishi Nair).[11][12] Mistry's character was part of a group self-harm storyline that won the British Soap Award for Best Single Episode in 2018.[13] Her other storylines on the show have included her character's Asian family being the target of a far right group, her marriage to Tom Cunningham (Ellis Hollins) and coming to terms with the rape of her mother, the latter of which she won Scene of The Year for alongside Virdi at the British Soap Awards in 2022.[14][15][16][17][18][19] Mistry took a break from filming Hollyoaks in 2021 to star as Billy Jo in the short film Mug, directed by Jo Lane and produced by Daljinder Johal that is set to air in 2022.[20][21]

Filmography edit

Year Title Role Notes Ref(s)
2017–2024 Hollyoaks Yasmine Maalik Regular role [7]
2022 Mug Billy Jo Short film [20]

Stage edit

Title Ref(s)
Climate of Fear [7]
Mr and Mrs Khan [7]
Bear Hunt Chocolate Cake [7]
Bad Things Interactive Experience [7]

Awards and nominations edit

Year Award Category Work Result Ref.
2022 British Soap Awards Scene of the Year (with Harvey Virdi) Hollyoaks Won [18]

References edit

  1. ^ Mistry, Haiesha (16 August 2022). "The most important day of the year has arrived - MY BIRTHDAY ✨🥳 #Birthday #LeoSeason ♌ #ItsNotJustBirthdayDayItsBirthdayMonth". Instagram. Retrieved 20 August 2022.
  2. ^ Mistry, Haiesha [@haieshamistry] (2 June 2019). "Serving some Indian representation at @SoapAwards 👸🏾" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  3. ^ "Haiesha Mistry - Actress & Drama Facilitator represented by Jane Hollowood". LinkedIn. Retrieved 20 August 2022.
  4. ^ "Showcase - University of Salford". New Adelphi Theatre. 1 March 2018. Retrieved 20 August 2022.
  5. ^ "Hollyoaks star Haiesha Mistry hits back at "bad advice" given to aspiring actors". Digital Spy. 27 June 2019. Retrieved 20 August 2022.
  6. ^ "Haiesha Mistry worked 5 jobs a day to fund acting auditions". Female First. 26 June 2019. Retrieved 29 August 2022.
  7. ^ a b c d e f g "Hollyoaks is bringing in TV newcomer Haiesha Mistry to play 'loud and flamboyant' teenager Yasmine". Digital Spy. 24 March 2017. Retrieved 20 August 2022.
  8. ^ "Haiesha Mistry glows as she poses while filming abroad for Hollyoaks". Metro. 7 April 2022. Retrieved 20 August 2022.
  9. ^ "Hollyoaks star Haiesha Mistry reveals new drama for Yazz and Tom". Digital Spy. 4 June 2022. Retrieved 29 August 2022.
  10. ^ "Hollyoaks introduces new character Yasmine. But who is she?". OK!. 24 March 2017. Retrieved 29 August 2022.
  11. ^ "Hollyoaks to expand the Maalik family as Sami's half-brother arrives". Digital Spy. 5 September 2019. Retrieved 20 August 2022.
  12. ^ "Hollyoaks star Haiesha Mistry teases huge new storyline for Yasmine Maalik". Digital Spy. 26 September 2020. Retrieved 20 August 2022.
  13. ^ "Hollyoaks star Haeisha Mistry reveals self-harm aftermath for Yasmine Maalik". Digital Spy. 17 October 2017. Retrieved 20 August 2022.
  14. ^ "Hollyoaks character to be groomed in far-right plot". BBC News. 23 November 2018. Retrieved 29 August 2022.
  15. ^ "Exclusive: Hollyoaks writer reveals how the Maaliks will cope in far-right abuse plot". Digital Spy. 13 March 2019. Retrieved 29 August 2022.
  16. ^ "Hollyoaks confirms New Year's Eve wedding couple in new episode". Digital Spy. 29 October 2020. Retrieved 29 August 2022.
  17. ^ "Hollyoaks stars Omar Malik and Haiesha Mistry reveal devastating Misbah storyline". Digital Spy. 25 October 2021. Retrieved 20 August 2022.
  18. ^ a b "British Soap Awards 2022 winners list - updated live". Digital Spy. 11 June 2022. Retrieved 20 August 2022.
  19. ^ "Far right attack rocks Hollyoaks as Ste turns on Jonny – but is Yazz dead?". Radio Times. 16 September 2019. Retrieved 20 August 2022.
  20. ^ a b "Haiesha Mistry to star in short film Mug". Female First. 9 June 2021. Retrieved 29 August 2022.
  21. ^ "Haiesha Mistry". Jane Hollowood. Retrieved 20 August 2022.

External links edit