Zubin Varla

Acting

Zubin Varla

Acting credits

National Theatre Live: Golden Boy poster
NR

1930s New York, at the height of the Depression. Joe Bonaparte is a gifted young violinist with extraordinary talent and a future in music, until a chance at fame and fortune lures him into the brutal world of professional boxing. Pressured by a ruthless manager, tempted by a forbidden love, and bound by the expectations of his Italian-American family, Joe is a young man torn between the seductive promise of the American Dream and the quiet honor of a decent life. He must confront what he’s willing to sacrifice, who he’s willing to become, and how to find his place in a world that demands he choose a side. Sam Yates directs Josh O'Connor in this searing revival of Clifford Odets' knockout American classic. Brought to life with a live string quartet, this propulsive drama explores ambition, identity, and the high price of success.

National Theatre Live: Golden Boy

2026

A Little Life poster
9.0

Following four college friends in New York City: aspiring actor Willem, successful architect Malcolm, struggling artist JB, and prodigious lawyer Jude. As ambition, addiction, and pride threaten to pull the group apart, they always find themselves bound by their love for Jude and the mysteries of his past. But when those secrets come to light, they finally learn that to know Jude St Francis is to understand the limitless potential of love in the face of life.

A Little Life

2023

Jacob poster
6.7

Isaac's son Jacob deprives his brother Esau of his birthright and has to flee for his life. He finds shelter with his uncle Laban, but is himself deceived. Finally, Jacob has to face both his uncle and brother.

Jacob

1994

Twelfth Night, or What You Will poster
4.5

Multicultural version of the Shakespearean tale Twelth Night, Made in modern day society featuring Anglo-Indian cast.

Twelfth Night, or What You Will

2003

Divine Origins poster
NR

Caught between her alienated parents, teenage Ama starts a new relationship with a young lifeguard - but she can’t escape a quiet haunting that feels increasingly familiar.

Divine Origins

2025

This Is Your Five Minute Call poster
NR

A young opera director battles backstage to save her premiere, whilst her father, deep in the woods, considers his own final act.

This Is Your Five Minute Call

Mad Sad & Bad poster
4.7

HARDEEP, RASHMI and ATUL are brothers and sisters. Which means they can say anything they like to each other, no matter how honest. Mad, Sad and Bad is a 90-minute comedy about mixed race relationships set in Luton. It's about mid-thirties siblings and friends whose personal lives are continuously messed up by their own selfish needs. Mad, Sad and Bad explores our contemporary metropolitan neuroses through the intersecting lives of these siblings and their friends. The narrative slips from one character to the next as they escape and attack each other. all reluctant members of the same dysfunctional family. Written by Ed Barratt

Mad Sad & Bad

2009

National Theatre at Home: A Tupperware of Ashes poster
NR

An ambitious Michelin-Star chef, Queenie is used to having the last word. But when her children notice gaps in her memory and her grip on reality loosening, they are faced with an impossible choice. As Raj, Gopal and Kamala battle to reconcile their life-long duty to their mother, the ramifications of their decision take on a heartbreaking permanence.

National Theatre at Home: A Tupperware of Ashes

2025

National Theatre Live: Dara poster
9.0

1659 Mughal, India. Two brothers, Dara and Aurangzeb, are both heirs to the Muslim empire. Dara, the crown prince, has the love of the people – and of his emperor father – but younger brother Aurangzeb holds a different vision for India’s future. Now they fight ferociously for succession.

National Theatre Live: Dara

2020

Ish poster
8.0

Twelve-year-old best friends, Ish and Maram wrestle to hold onto their friendship, in the wake of a traumatic police stop & search. As the ripples take hold, the boys try to make sense of the men they are becoming – and how ‘letting go’ can be the hardest part of growing up.

Ish

2026

Saddam's Tribe poster
NR

The invasion of Iraq in 2003 brought a dramatic end to Saddam Hussein's brutal regime. But behind the headlines lay an even more extraordinary story of family and tribal loyalty, rivalry and betrayal. Inspired by interviews with Saddam's daughter Raghad and other key eye-witnesses, as well as extensive research, this drama gets to the heart of the dictator's tyranny and his eventual downfall.

Saddam's Tribe

2007

A Midsummer Night's Dream - Live at Shakespeare's Globe poster
10.0

A recording of the final night of Emma Rice's transgressive and flamboyant production of Shakespeare's comedy at the Globe in London. Four runaway lovers find themselves smack bang in the middle of a dispute between the King and Queen of the fairies, and, as if that wasn’t enough, a troupe of amateur actors are trying to rehearse a play. Between these unlikely groups flies Puck, armed only with a wicked sense of humour and a love potion capable of making anyone fall for the first person they set eyes upon. What could possibly go wrong?

A Midsummer Night's Dream - Live at Shakespeare's Globe

2016