Naseeruddin Shah is an Indian/Bollywood film actor and director. He is widely considered to be one of the finest Indian stage and film actors. He is an influential actor of the Indian Parallel (New Wave) Cinema. Shah has won numerous awards in his career, including three National Film Awards, three Filmfare Awards for Best Actor, and a Best Actor Award (The Volpi Cup) at the Venice Film Festival. The Government of India has honored him with both the Padma Shri and the Padma Bhushan civilian awards for his contributions to Indian cinema. Shah was born on 20 July 1950 in Barabanki, Uttar Pradesh, India where his father was a Navy officer. Shah’s family hails from Sardhana in District Meerut (Uttar Pradesh). He is a descendant of the 19th-century Afghan warlord Jan Fishan Khan. Naseeruddin Shah did his schooling at St. Anselm’s Ajmer and St Joseph’s College, Nainital. He graduated in arts from Aligarh Muslim University in 1971 and attended National School of Drama in Delhi. He has been successful in mainstream Bollywood cinema as well as in Parallel Cinema. He has appeared in international films, notably playing Captain Nemo in the Hollywood comic book adaptation The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen.