Saagar Shaikh
American actor (born 1986)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Saagar Shaikh (Sindhi: ساگر شيخ;born 1986)[1] is an American actor best known for his roles as Aamir Khan on Ms. Marvel and Raj Dar on Deli Boys, for which he won the Breakthrough Actor Spotlight Award at the 2025 Astra TV Awards.
Saagar Shaikh | |
|---|---|
| ساگر شيخ | |
| Born | 1986 (age 39–40) Alief, Texas, U.S. |
| Alma mater | University of Texas at San Antonio |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Known for | Ms. Marvel, Deli Boys |
Early life and education
Shaikh was born in Alief, Texas[2] and raised in Houston until age 14, when his family moved to San Antonio.[3] He is of Pakistani Sindhi descent and was raised in a Muslim family.[1][4] He has two brothers.[5] His father worked at a gas station and eventually became the owner of three convenience stores.[6] Shaikh worked part-time at his father's convenience store when he was a teenager.[1] He graduated from John Marshall High School in 2005 and received his bachelor's degree in business from University of Texas at San Antonio.[3]
Career
Shaikh began to pivot to acting while in college after he secured an internship at a talent management company.[4] Against his parents' wishes, he moved to Los Angeles to pursue acting full-time after graduation.[4] Shaikh struggled to find acting roles due to limited opportunities for South Asian actors.[6] In 2015 he began to take post-production jobs to stay employed in the entertainment industry even though his primary interest was acting.[5] He worked in post-production roles for five years, including as a production assistant and occasional on-camera crew member for the YouTube series Good Mythical Morning hosted by Rhett & Link.[5] He also took classes and performed at UCB Theatre for several years.[5] Shaikh is a founding member of The Get Brown, a South Asian comedy troupe that formed at UCB in 2018.[7]
He gained prominence in the role of Aamir Khan on the Disney+ series Ms. Marvel.[3] He also appeared in the film The Marvels.[1] Shaikh also co-hosted the comedy podcast The Bollywood Boys with Shaan Baig, where they revisit classic and some contemporary Bollywood films.[8][9] He is a lead role in the 2025 Hulu comedy Deli Boys, created by Abdullah Saeed.[6]
Shaikh returned to his alma mater University of Texas at San Antonio in the spring semester 2026 as a professor of practice to teach a course in the dramatic arts program.[10]
Personal life
Shaikh is married.[3]
Awards and nominations
For Deli Boys:
- 2025 – Nominee, Gotham TV Award for Outstanding Lead Performance in a Comedy Series[11]
- 2025 – Winner, Astra TV Awards, Breakthrough Actor Spotlight Award[12]
- 2026 – Winner, IndieWire Honors Breakthrough Award[13]
Filmography
Film
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | Chavez Cage of Glory | Bar Patron | ||
| 2014 | Welcome to Forever | Bruce | ||
| 2023 | The Marvels | Aamir Khan | [1] |
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015-2016 | Just Giggle It | Matt / Weight-Lifter | ||
| 2016 | Average Joe | Sound Guy | ||
| 2018 | Unfair & Ugly | Haaris Shaikh | ||
| Yeoja | Amit | |||
| 2019 | Liza on Demand | Office-Topia Worker | ||
| 2022 | Ms. Marvel | Aamir Khan | Recurring role | [2] |
| 2025–present | Deli Boys | Raj Dar | Main role | [6] |