Indira Varma

Indira Anne Varma (born 27 September 1973) is a British actress and narrator whose career spans film, television, stage and voice work, making her a versatile presence in contemporary entertainment. Raised in Bath, Somerset, she is the only child of an Indian father and a Swiss‑Italian mother, an artistic household that fostered her early interest in performance; she joined the Musical Youth Theatre Company before training at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, graduating in 1995. Her screen debut came in 1996 as a courtesan in Kama Sutra: A Tale of Love, quickly followed by roles in Jinnah and Bride and Prejudice, establishing her as a talent capable of handling complex, cross‑cultural characters. Varma gained international recognition as Niobe in the BBC/HBO epic Rome (2005‑07) and later as Suzie Costello in the cult sci‑fi series Torchwood (2006), showcasing her ability to blend period drama with genre storytelling. She continued to build an impressive television résumé with parts such as Zoe Luther in Luther, Ilsa Pucci in Human Target, and the memorable Ellaria Sand, the vengeful paramour of Oberyn Martell, in Game of Thrones (2014‑17), a role that highlighted her skill in delivering nuanced villainy. In recent years she has headlined the Netflix‑backed thriller Paranoid as DS Nina Suresh, appeared in the Obi‑Wan Kenobi series, and joined the Mission: Impossible franchise, proving her staying power across multiple platforms. Beyond screen work, Varma is a distinguished stage actress, earning a Laurence Olivier Award for Best Supporting Actress for her 2019 performance in Present Laughter and receiving a second Olivier nomination for Oedipus in 2025. Her theatre credits include Shakespearean roles such as Lady Macbeth opposite Ralph Fiennes and a Helen Hayes Award for her 2023‑24 production of Macbeth. As a narrator she has lent her voice to the Witches audiobooks and major video‑game titles like Dragon Age: Inquisition and World of Warcraft, rounding out a career marked by bold choices and artistic depth.