Shahnaz Rizwan: The Actress Who Found Fame Twice

Introduction

Shahnaz Rizwan is a British-Pakistani actress, writer, poet, and educator. She is best known for playing Santosh “Toshi” Bhalla in the Indian television series Yeh Hai Mohabbatein. She also played Farida in the BBC comedy series Juice.

Her acting career started in childhood. Then life took another direction.

She moved to Britain in 1994, raised her family, and built a career in education. Years later, a few videos made with her son brought her back into the entertainment industry.

That second chance changed everything.

Today, her career covers Pakistani cinema, Indian television, British comedy, writing, and community education.

Quick Facts

Detail	Information
Full Name	Shahnaz Rizwan
Birth Month and Year	December 1956, according to her official founder biography
Age in October 2026	69, based on that birth record
Birthplace	Karachi, Pakistan
Nationality	British-Pakistani
Profession	Actress, writer, poet, educator, and playwright
Father	Ahmed Ghazi
Mother	Khadija Ghazi
Husband	Rizwan Siddiqui
Children	Three, including Mawaan and Nabhaan Rizwan
Education	University of Karachi and University of East London
Famous Television Role	Santosh Bhalla in Yeh Hai Mohabbatein
Other Notable Series	Juice
Organisation	Ghazi Educational Society
Poetry Book	Shahnaz Ke Jugnu
Notable Recognition	Queen’s Platinum Champion Award, reported in 2022

Early Life and Family Background

She was born in Karachi, Pakistan, in December 1956, according to the founder biography published by Ghazi Educational Society.

Her childhood was spent between Karachi and Lahore.

Her father, Ahmed Ghazi, worked as an actor and writer. Her mother was Khadija Ghazi. Growing up around performers meant acting became part of her life very early.

She was still a toddler.

According to her official biography, she started appearing in Pakistani films at the age of two. Her son Mawaan later recalled that she had acted in around 35 black-and-white films as a child.

Some of those roles were unusual.

Her younger son, Nabhaan, explained in an interview that she sometimes played boys in films. For one role, her hair was styled to make her look like a boy, and she was presented under the name Master Jimmy.

But childhood fame did not last.

She stopped working in films during her teenage years. Family expectations and attitudes toward acting made it difficult to continue.

Still, performing remained part of her interests.

Education and Academic Background

Education became a major part of her adult life.

She studied science before turning her attention toward languages, literature, and teaching.

Her official biography records that she completed an FSc in Physics, Chemistry, and Biology at SMB Fatimah Jinnah Girls’ College in Karachi.

She also studied Microbiology and Chemistry at St Joseph’s Convent College.

Later, her academic interests changed.

She completed a BA covering Education, Sociology, and Advanced Urdu. She then earned a master’s degree in Urdu Language and Literature from the University of Karachi.

Her studies continued after she moved to Britain.

In 1999, she gained an Advanced GNVQ in Art and Design from Barking College in London.

She received a BA (Hons) in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages from the University of East London in 2005.

Her official biography also lists a CELTA teaching qualification in 2007.

These qualifications supported her later work teaching English to adult learners.

She eventually worked as an ESOL lecturer at Newham College of Further Education.

Teaching was serious work for her. It also helped her support people adjusting to life in Britain.

Moving to Britain and Starting Again

In 1994, she made a major decision.

She moved to Britain with her two older children, hoping they would receive better educational opportunities.

The move was not easy.

In a 2018 interview with The Guardian, she described arriving without an established support network or financial security.

Her husband initially remained in Pakistan. He joined the family later.

Money was tight during those early years.

She worked several jobs while caring for her children. Her sons have spoken publicly about her long working hours and the difficulties the family faced.

Immigration issues added more pressure.

According to interviews with her children, she fought to keep the family in Britain when their immigration status became uncertain.

Through those years, she kept one thing constant.

Her children’s education mattered.

She arranged study activities at home and began tutoring other children. Her son Mawaan recalled that their home often felt like a classroom, with other children joining them for lessons.

Over time, that work grew beyond the family.

Teaching and Community Work

In 1999, she founded Ghazi Educational Society in London.

The voluntary organisation focuses on education, community support, cultural activities, and well-being.

Its work has included language learning, creative activities, and community events.

English classes were especially useful for people who had recently arrived in Britain.

Learning the language could help them handle everyday tasks, communicate with services, and become more independent.

She also brought theatre into community learning.

Her son Mawaan has described how she encouraged people taking part in her classes and community projects to perform plays.

Acting and education worked together.

The organisation remains an important part of her public work.

How Her Acting Career Started Again

The return was unexpected.

In 2012, her son Mawaan Rizwan was making comedy videos for YouTube.

He invited his mother to appear.

She agreed.

Their videos showed a different side of her personality. She was funny, expressive, and comfortable performing in front of a camera.

Viewers enjoyed watching her.

Then something surprising happened.

An Indian television producer contacted Mawaan after seeing the videos. The producer was interested in his mother.

She received an opportunity to audition.

For someone who had left acting decades earlier, it was a big moment.

She accepted the offer and travelled to Mumbai.

That decision brought her back to professional television acting.

Television Breakthrough

Her best-known role came in 2013.

She joined the Star Plus drama Yeh Hai Mohabbatein, produced by Balaji Telefilms.

She played Santosh Bhalla, widely known as Mrs Bhalla or Toshi.

The character was Raman Bhalla’s mother.

She appeared alongside actors including Karan Patel and Divyanka Tripathi.

Her character became familiar to regular viewers through the show’s family stories, arguments, emotional scenes, and comedy.

For many fans, Mrs Bhalla was a memorable part of the programme.

The series gave her a large television audience after years away from mainstream acting.

She remained associated with the show from 2013 until 2018.

Why She Left the Popular Drama

Her years in Mumbai brought professional success, but they also meant living far from her family in London.

That distance became difficult.

In 2018, she left Yeh Hai Mohabbatein and returned to Britain.

Her family had been an important part of her life throughout her acting career.

Returning to London allowed her to spend more time with them and continue her other interests.

She did not stop working creatively.

Her career simply entered another phase.

Movies and Television Appearances

Her screen career includes Pakistani films, short films, Indian television, and British comedy.

Some of her publicly documented credits are listed below.

Year	Film or Television Production	Role
1965	Hazar Dastan	Actress
1967	Shola Aur Shabnam	Actress
2011	Jimmy Will Play	Fatima
2011	Paper Boy	Reshma
2013–2018	Yeh Hai Mohabbatein	Mrs Bhalla
2016	Naagin	Kabir’s mother
2018	Hounslow Diaries	Auntie Nusrut
2023–2025	Juice	Farida

These are identifiable public credits. They do not cover every film she appeared in as a child.

Her Role in the BBC Comedy Juice

Years after her Indian television success, she returned to British television.

This time, she worked with her own family.

She played Farida in Juice, a BBC comedy created by Mawaan Rizwan.

The series follows Jamma, a young man dealing with relationships, family expectations, and his own behaviour.

Her character is Jamma’s mother.

The programme also features her younger son, Nabhaan Rizwan.

The first series aired in 2023.

She returned as Farida for the second series in 2025.

The show gave her another chance to work in comedy and brought members of the Rizwan family together on screen.

In interviews, Mawaan has discussed how his family’s experiences helped inform parts of the series.

For viewers who knew her from Indian television, Juice offered a different performance.

Husband and Married Life

Her husband is Rizwan Siddiqui.

Their son Nabhaan discussed his parents’ relationship in a 2020 interview with The Standard.

According to that interview, Rizwan worked as an accountant and interpreter and was also involved in writing plays.

The couple met in Pakistan while he was auditioning her for one of his theatrical productions.

Their shared interest in performance became part of family life.

Even after moving to Britain, creative activities remained common in their household.

Public interviews have discussed their marriage and family background, though the exact date of their wedding has not been established through the sources reviewed.

Children and Their Careers

She has three children.

Two of them have built public careers in British entertainment.

Mawaan Rizwan

Mawaan is a British comedian, actor, writer, and performer.

He first gained attention through YouTube videos before working in television and live comedy.

His work includes Taskmaster and the BBC comedy Juice.

He also played a direct part in bringing his mother back to acting.

Without those early comedy videos, her return to Indian television might have happened very differently.

Nabhaan Rizwan

Nabhaan is a British actor.

He is known for roles in productions including Informer, 1917, Mogul Mowgli, and Industry.

He has spoken about growing up in a family that encouraged artistic activities.

His mother’s acting background and his father’s interest in theatre were part of that environment.

The family also includes an older daughter, mentioned in published interviews. Reliable sources reviewed for this article do not establish her name.

Writing Career and Published Books

Acting is only part of her work.

She also writes poetry and educational material.

In a 2018 author interview, she recalled beginning to write poetry at around 16 years old.

Her writing often came from personal feelings and experiences.

She continued writing poems for many years before gathering them into a published collection.

Shahnaz Ke Jugnu

In 2018, she published Shahnaz Ke Jugnu, a collection of Urdu poetry.

The title translates into English as Shahnaz’s Fireflies.

The book brought together poems written over several decades.

In her author interview, she discussed how writing helped her express thoughts, deal with emotional experiences, and share ideas with readers.

Ghazi Urdu Qaidah

Her professional agency lists Ghazi Urdu Qaidah as a book she authored in 2004.

It reflects her long involvement with Urdu-language education.

Ghazi Urdu Primer

In April 2024, her agency announced the release of Ghazi Urdu Primer.

The book teaches Urdu to English-speaking beginners.

It was prepared for learners of different ages, including children and adults.

Her interest in language teaching clearly continued beyond her classroom career.

Theatre and Production Work

Stage performance also has a place in her career.

Her official biography records that she wrote and performed in plays during the 1990s.

One production was Husband for Sale, staged at Ilford Town Hall in London in 1996.

Her theatre work continued her interest in writing and performance during the years when she was building her life in Britain.

After returning from Mumbai in 2018, she established Shanna Productions.

The production company became another part of her artistic activities.

Awards and Recognition

Her official founder biography records several awards connected with acting and voluntary work.

As a child performer, she received the Screen Light Award at around six years old.

The same biography says she won a Critics Award at around ten.

These are awards reported by her own organisation.

In 2022, the organisation also recorded her receiving the Queen’s Platinum Champion Award for voluntary work.

Her television career brought another kind of recognition.

Playing Mrs Bhalla introduced her to viewers across South Asia and beyond.

Later, Juice brought her work to British comedy audiences.

Age and Date of Birth

Her age is one detail that needs care.

Ghazi Educational Society’s founder biography records her birth as December 1956 in Karachi.

Based on that record, she is 69 years old as of October 2026.

Some entertainment websites publish a different birth date.

Those conflicting entries have not been independently resolved, so an exact birthday should not be treated as confirmed.

The birth month and year given by her organisation are used here, with that source qualification.

What Is She Doing in 2026?

Her most recent television work confirmed in the sources reviewed is Juice series two, released in September 2025.

Her public career also includes Ghazi Educational Society, Urdu-language books, and creative work.

Her official organisation continues to maintain information about its educational and community activities.

As of October 2026, no newer acting project has been confirmed through the reliable sources checked for this article.

That does not mean she has retired.

It simply means a later screen project has not been verified.

Final Thought

Her life has taken several turns.

She started acting as a child in Pakistan, later moved to Britain, worked hard to support her family, and built a career in education.

Then acting came back.

A few family comedy videos opened the door to a major Indian television role. Years later, she appeared in a BBC series created by her son.

Her story also goes beyond television.

She has written poetry, taught languages, and spent years working with communities.

And that is what makes her career interesting. She found success in different fields, at different stages of life.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. Who is Shahnaz Rizwan?

Shahnaz Rizwan is a British-Pakistani actress, poet, writer, and educator. She is known for playing Mrs Bhalla in Yeh Hai Mohabbatein and Farida in Juice.

2. How old is she in 2026?

She is 69 as of October 2026, based on the December 1956 birth record published by Ghazi Educational Society. Other websites list conflicting birth details.

3. Where was she born?

She was born in Karachi, Pakistan, and grew up between Karachi and Lahore.

4. Who is her husband?

Her husband is Rizwan Siddiqui, who has worked as an accountant, interpreter, and playwright.

5. How many children does she have?

She has three children, including actors Mawaan Rizwan and Nabhaan Rizwan.

6. Which television show made her famous?

She became widely recognised for playing Santosh “Toshi” Bhalla in Yeh Hai Mohabbatein, which aired on Star Plus.

7. What is her educational qualification?

She holds an MA in Urdu Language and Literature from the University of Karachi and a BA (Hons) in TESOL from the University of East London, among other qualifications.

8. Is she still acting?

Her latest confirmed television appearance in the sources reviewed was in the second series of Juice in 2025. No newer acting project was verified as of October 2026.