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Shannon Esra

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Shannon Esra
Born
Shannon Esrechowitz

(1984-02-01) 1 February 1984 (age 40)
Johannesburg, South Africa
Alma materUniversity of the Witwatersrand
Occupations
  • Actress
  • voice-over artist
Years active2000–present
Known for

Shannon Esra (née Esrechowitz; born 1 February 1984) is a South African actress and voice-over artist. She is known for playing the lawyer Sandra Stein in the drama series The Queen and The River and Samantha Hugo in the series Lioness.[1][2] Esra is among the first Caucasian actresses to play a lead role in Bollywood in the film Salaam-e-Ishq.[3]

Early life

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Early life and career beginning

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Esra had her first "taste" of acting at age 4, narrating at a nursery school Purim concert. She later did impersonations of Elvis Presley at local talent contests.

Esra did her first professional acting at the age of 16, when she appeared in the film I Dreamed of Africa (starring Kim Basinger), playing a character named Siri.[4] She later studied Dramatic Arts at the University of the Witwatersrand receiving her BA (Hons) Degree in 2003.

She won a Naledi Theatre Award for Best Performance by a Newcomer/Breakthrough (Female), in Dorothy Ann Gould's theatre production Japes for her portrayal of Neets. She also received a Fleur du Cap nomination for this role.

Other stage productions include the three-woman comedy Six Inches (2018) written and directed by Kristy Suttner, as well as the cabaret Homebound in 2004.

Career

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Television appearance

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Esra made history in Bollywood with her portrayal of Stephanie in the film Salaam-e-Ishq: A Tribute to Love by being one of the first Caucasian actresses in a lead role.[5][4][6] Dying her hair blonde and speaking in an American accent, Esra plays an American who travels to India to stop her boyfriend (played by Kushal Punjabi) from marrying. After reaching India, she met Raju, a taxi driver (played by Govinda) who comes to her assistance and she eventually falls in love with Raju.

In 2005 she guest-starred alongside Eric Stoltz, playing his estranged and embittered ex-wife, in the Sci Fi Channel's miniseries The Triangle. She also played the romantic lead Katie in Darrell Roodt's film about rugby, Number 10.

In 2005 Esra played the lead role of Caz O’Donough, an undercover police officer, in the gritty South African psychological thriller / police drama Snitch. Caz is a 20-year-old single mother, finding out that the father of her daughter, Lawrence Carter, is a member of a mafia-style crime family that her "tough cop" father Chisel, has been trying to bring down.

She appeared in Tim Greene's multiple South African Film & Television Award-winning newsroom drama Hard Copy, as the ambitious investigative journalist Kim Smollen. Kim is a Jewish girl in her mid-20s who started working as the entertainment reporter at the hard edged newspaper The Bulletin. In the third season Kim is given the opportunity for "serious" reporting, at the now re-invented sleazy tabloid The Bullet.[7]

Between 2021 and 2023, she has starred in two seasons as Samantha Hugo in the South African crime drama series Lioness.

Filmography

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Films

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Year Title Role Notes
2000 I Dreamed of Africa Siri American film
2006 Number 10 Katie
2007 Salaam-e-Ishq Stephanie Indian Hindi-language film[8]
2011 2ND Take 'Movie' Lindsey
2015 The Gamechangers Jen Kolbe BBC docudrama
2021 The Ground Under Jessica 'Jess' Stuckman
2023 Do Your Worst Sondra

Television

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Year Title Role Notes
2003 Yizo Yizo 3 Robbery Daughter
2004 Isidingo Yvette Meyer
2004 Snitch Caz O’Donough
2005 The Triangle Sally TV miniseries, Sci Fi Channel
2006–2007 Hard Copy Kim Smollen TV series, season 2, 3
2007–2008 Life Is Wild Lauren Recurring, on The CW series
2008 Wild at Heart Angie Season 3
2008 The Lab Samantha Mazur Season 2
2010 Miss Behave Rachel
2015–2017 Isidingo Angelique Scott
2017–2021 The Queen Sandra Stein Season 2 - 6
2018–2022 The River Sandra Stein Season 1 - 5
2019 The Throne Sandra Stein Season 1
2020 - 2021 Gomora Sandra Stein Season 1 - 2
2021 - 2022 Legacy Sandra Stein Season 1 - 2
2020 Still Breathing Candice Burton
2021–present Lioness Samatha Hugo Main role

Personal life

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Esra lives in Sandton with her parents and younger brother. She is a "closet fan" of competitive ping-pong competitions.[9]

References

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  1. ^ "Sandra Stein: Defending Mzansi's Female Criminal Masterminds". DSTV. 29 April 2021.
  2. ^ "'I cried for four days' - Shannon Esra opens up about season two of Lioness". SNL24. 6 December 2022.
  3. ^ "#aTypicalInterview: Shannon Esra would love to take Anele Mdoda on in a ping-pong match". IOL. 27 September 2020.
  4. ^ a b "SHE-RO: Effusive, dynamic, charming, and wildly passionate, Shannon Esra". IOL. 12 August 2022.
  5. ^ "Shannon Esra". OSM Talent.
  6. ^ "Tonight | Hollywood next for Shannon Esra?". tonight.co.za. Archived from the original on 18 January 2008.
  7. ^ "Shannon Esra | Tvsa". tvsa.co.za.
  8. ^ "17 Years of Salaam-E-Ishq EXCLUSIVE: Shannon Esra talks about her experience of doing a Hindi film and working with Govinda: "He was polite and sweet; but one day, he disappeared in the middle of a scene to slaughter a goat for good luck"". Bollywood Hungama. 3 February 2024.
  9. ^ "Vuvuzelaonline".
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