Ellora Torchia
{{Short description|British actress (born 1992)}}
{{Infobox person
| birth_name = Rashmika Ellora Torchia
| birth_date = {{Birth year and age|1992|4}}
| birth_place = London, England
| education = Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (BA)
| years_active = 2010–present
}}
Rashmika Ellora Torchia (born April 1992) is a British actress. For her role in the film In the Earth (2021), she was nominated for a British Independent Film Award. Her other films include Les Cowboys (2015), Midsommar (2019), and Ali & Ava (2021).
She was named a 2021 Screen International Star of Tomorrow and a BAFTA Breakthrough Brit.{{Cite web|url=https://www.screendaily.com/features/stars-of-tomorrow-2021-ellora-torchia-actor/5163775.article|title=Stars of Tomorrow 2021: Ellora Torchia (actor)|journal=Screen Daily|first=Mark|last=Salisbury|date=4 October 2021|accessdate=18 June 2023}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.bafta.org/supporting-talent/breakthrough/ellora-torchia-actor|title=Ellora Torchia - Performer|website=BAFTA|accessdate=18 June 2023}}
Early life
Torchia was born in Hammersmith, West London to South African-Indian mother Veena and Italian father Maurelio, who met in Switzerland. She has three sisters. The family lived in Sri Lanka, India, Turkey, Tunisia and Japan, before returning to London when Torchia was 13.{{Cite web|url=https://theveganreview.com/the-father-daughter-duo-behind-the-creativity-of-theartyvegan/|title=The father-daughter duo behind the creativity of the'artyvegan|website=The Vegan Review|first=Mansi|last=Vithlani|date=24 January 2021|accessdate=18 June 2023}}
Torchia graduated from the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA) in 2014 with a Bachelor of Arts in Acting.{{Cite web|url=https://www.rada.ac.uk/profiles/ellora-torchia/|title=Ellora Torchia|website=RADA|accessdate=18 June 2023}}
Career
Torchia made her television debut in a 2010 episode of the BBC One spy drama Spooks (also known as MI-5). She appeared in a 2014 installment of The Suspicions of Mr Whicher as well as two 2015 episodes of DCI Banks, both on ITV.
In her final year at RADA, Torchia was cast as Sita in the first series of the Channel 4 drama Indian Summers, which premiered in 2015.{{Cite web|url=http://www.sfchronicle.com/tv/article/PBS-Indian-Summers-a-provocative-winner-6503750.php?t=06596b6a5a00af33be|title=PBS' 'Indian Summers' a provocative winner|website=San Francisco Chronicle|first=David|last=Wiegand|date=24 September 2015 |access-date=2016-03-11}} She signed with an agent in Paris, through which she was cast in the French film Les Cowboys, marking her feature film debut. The following year, she played Vishka in the ITV fantasy series Beowulf: Return to the Shieldlands. She made her professional stage debut in Boys Will Be Boys at the Bush Theatre.{{Cite web|url=https://www.bushtheatre.co.uk/person_org/ellora-torchia/|title=Ellora Torchia|website=Bush Theatre|date=19 April 2016|accessdate=30 June 2023}} This was followed by a role in The Treatment at the Almeida Theatre in 2017.
After guest starring in a series 3 episode of Broadchurch on ITV, Torchia had a recurring role as Maggie Lavelle in the first two series of the BBC One legal drama The Split. She also spent a year working at Shakespeare's Globe, appearing in All That Ends Well and The Two Noble Kinsmen. In 2019, she played Connie in Ari Aster's A24 folk horror film Midsommar.
Torchia starred in the 2021 science fiction horror film In the Earth,{{Cite web|url=https://www.pressreader.com/uk/empire-uk/20210701/281694027718301|title=Ellora Torchia|journal=Empire|first=John|last=Nugent|date=21 July 2021|accessdate=1 July 2023}} for which she was nominated for the British Independent Film Award for Breakthrough Performance. She also had roles in the films Ali & Ava and Crisis.
In 2022, Torchia starred as Reva in the Canal+ series Infiniti.{{Cite web|url=https://lubieenserie.fr/infiniti-ellora-torchia/?doing_wp_cron=1688247072.2742800712585449218750|title=Interview INFINITI avec Ellora Torchia !|website=Lubie en Série|date=11 April 2022|accessdate=1 July 2023|language=fr}} In 2023, she played Sienna Rose in the BBC One miniseries The Gold. In May 2023, it was rumoured Torchia had joined the cast of the HBO fantasy series House of the Dragon for its second season in an undisclosed role.{{Cite web|url=https://wikiofthrones.com/the-gold-actress-ellora-torchia-house-of-the-dragon|title=The Gold actress Ellora Torchia has reportedly joined the cast of House of The Dragon|website=Wiki of Thrones|first=Sayantan|last=Choudhary|date=23 May 2023|accessdate=30 June 2023}}
Personal life
Torchia speaks English and French.{{Cite web|url=https://www.vogue.co.uk/arts-and-lifestyle/article/bafta-breakthrough-2021|title=Meet 3 Rising Stars Tipped By BAFTA To Take The Industry By Storm In 2022|journal=British Vogue|first=Radhika|last=Seth|date=8 December 2021|accessdate=1 July 2023}} She was raised vegan, and helps her parents run a business called the Arty Vegan.{{Cite web|url=https://www.betterspace.london/blog/happy-international-womens-day#:~:text=Ellora%20Torchia,to%20food%2Dlovers%20across%20London.|title=Happy International Women's Day|website=Better Space, Islington|date=8 March 2023|accessdate=1 July 2023}}{{cite web|last1=Vithlani|first1=Mansi|title=The father-daughter duo behind the creativity of the’artyvegan|url=https://www.theveganreview.com/the-father-daughter-duo-behind-the-creativity-of-theartyvegan/|website=The Vegan Review|date=24 January 2021}}
Filmography
=Film=
=Television=
| class="wikitable sortable" |
| Year
! Title ! Role ! class="unsortable" | Notes |
|---|
| 2010
| Spooks | Aala Hall | 1 episode |
| 2014
| The Suspicions of Mr Whicher | Miss Khan / Zeenat Jabour | Episode: "Beyond the Pale" |
| rowspan="2" | 2015
| Nafeesah Kamel | 2 episodes |
| Indian Summers
| Sita | 9 episodes (series 1) |
| 2016
| Beowulf: Return to the Shieldlands | Vishka | 12 episodes |
| 2017
| Nira | 1 episode |
| 2018–2020
| Maggie Lavelle | 12 episodes (series 1–2) |
| 2019
| Dr Emily Watkins | Episode: "The Valiant One" |
| rowspan="2" | 2021
| Knitter | Episode: "True" |
| On the Edge
| Maia | Episode: "Cradled" |
| rowspan="2" | 2022
| Infiniti | Reva | 6 episodes |
| Grantchester
| Maya | 3 episodes (series 7) |
| 2023
| The Gold | Sienna Rose | 5 episodes |
| 2024
| Kat |
| 2025
| Claire Steadman | 1 episode, 2 parts (series 28) | |
Stage
| class="wikitable sortable" |
| Year
! Title ! Role ! class="unsortable" | Notes |
|---|
| 2016
| Boys Will Be Boys | Priya Sengupta | Bush Theatre, London |
| 2017
| The Treatment | The Maid | Almeida Theatre, London |
| rowspan="3" | 2018
| Helena | rowspan="2" | Shakespeare's Globe, London |
| The Two Noble Kinsmen
| Emilia |
| Votes for Women
| Jean Dunbarton | National Theatre, London |
| rowspan="2" | 2024
| Alison Porter | rowspan="2" | Almeida Theatre, London |
| Roots
| Pearl Bryant |
Awards and nominations
| class="wikitable plainrowheaders" |
| Year
! Award ! Category ! Work ! Result ! Ref. |
|---|
| 2019
| colspan="2" | Ian Charleson Awards | The Two Noble Kinsmen | {{nom}} |
| 2021
| British Independent Film Awards | In the Earth | {{nom}} |
References
{{reflist}}
External links
- {{IMDb name|4089168}}
- [https://www.spotlight.com/4055-7868-2771 Ellora Torchia] at Spotlight
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Torchia, Ellora}}
Category:Alumni of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art
Category:British people of Indo-South African descent
Category:English people of Indian descent
Category:English people of Italian descent
Category:English people of South African descent
Category:Actresses from London
Category:People from Hammersmith
Category:Actors from the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham
Category:21st-century English actresses
Category:English film actresses