Bio
Waseem Shaikh is a South African actor and model best known for his role as fisherman and lifeguard Ashwin Pillay in the SABC1 drama series Bay of Plenty, since 31 October 2007.
He was crowned Mr India-South Africa in 2005.
Waseem studied a B.A. in Media and Communications at the University of Houston in Texas, USA, from 2002-2004. Since 2005 he has been studying for a B.A. in Drama & Performance Studies and Media & Communications at the University of KwaZulu Natal.
He has appeared in numerous theatrical productions, including The Most Amazing Adventures of Timothy Pepper (written and directed by Kyle Sturgess), No More Silence (written and directed by S'mangele Msimang), 'Dentity Crisis (directed by Siobhan Schultz), Twelfth Night (directed by Tamar Meskin and Tanya Van Der Walt) and Bollywood Calls Again (written and directed by Atelisha Harilall).
He also played the villan Pravesh in the lavish, Bollywood-style musical Bombay Crush, a hit production at the Izulu Theatre in Durban, in 2006.
In television, Waseem has appeared in the series Maths Joke and the short film Escape From Shady Pines.
His first major television role came in the 2007/8 drama series Bay of Plenty on SABC1, in which he played the role of lifeguard Ashwin Pillay.
Waseem also works in radio, having presented the breakfast show Drive Time and Teen Zone on Radio Al-Ansaar, Durban's Muslim community radio station.
He has also lent his voice to several radio dramas for Lotus FM, including What We Want To See, Look Behind The Geyser, Psycho Art and GrandAsia Lodge.
He has been an on-air jock for Lotus FM since 2006.
Waseem is fluent in English, Hindi and Urdu; and is familiar with Arabic, Gujarati and Zulu. He dances in various genres including Indian, Modern Indian, Hip Hop and Bollywood.
He currently resides in Durban.