While Dev Patel had enjoyed success in hit teen drama Skins it's his role in Danny Boyle's Slumdog Millionaire that has shot him to superstardom in recent months.
The rags to riches story has seen the eighteen year old mixing with the likes of Brad Pitt and Sean Penn at all the major awards ceremonies as Slumdog has taken home all the major gongs.
Growing up in Harrow he has come a long way to the glitzy red carpet at the Baftas just a week ago as he showed a flair for acting as he received an A* for his Drama GCSE.
He hit our television screens in 2006 in the role of Anwar Kharral in E4's drama Skins and he went on to play the character for two series.
And it was this role that landed him the part in the independent movie Slumdog Millionaire after Danny Boyle's daughter spotted him in the show.
Patel stars as Jamal Malik, an eighteen year old orphan from the slums of Mumbai who is on the verge of winning Who Wants to be A Millionaire?
But when the show breaks for the night police arrest him on suspicion of cheating: how could a street kid know so much?
Desperate to prove his innocence Jamal tells the story of his life in the slum where he and his brother grew up, of their adventures together on the road, of vicious encounters with local groups and of Latika, the girl he loved and lost.
The film lit up the Toronto Film Festival scooping the Cadillac People’s Choice Award and the film's success just snowballed to become the talk of Hollywood.
Winning over audiences and critics the film has dominated the awards season and being nominated for ten Oscars.
As well as the film being recognised a string of awards have come the way of the young actor as Patel scooped the Black Reel Award for both Best Actor and Best Breakthrough Performance. As well as Breakthrough gongs from the British Independent Film Awards, Chicago Film Critics Association Awards and the National Board of Review.
Despite his performance being overlooked at the Oscars he was nominated for Best Actor at the Baftas alongside the likes of Brad Pitt and Mickey Rourke and the Screen Actors Guild Awards.
Up next for the young star is the role of Zuko in The Last Airbender, based on Avatar: The Last Airbender the Emmy award winning animated TV series.
FemaleFirst Helen Earnshaw
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