Ben Kingsley

He played Mohandas K. Gandhi between the ages of 23 (in 1893) and 78 (in 1948) in the drama movie Gandhi (1982).

Kingsley's father, Rahimtulla Harji Bhanji, was a Kenyan-born physician of Gujrati Indian descent. Kingsley's mother, Anna Lyna Mary (Goodman) Bhanji, was an English fashion model and actress; she appeared in films in the 1920s and 1930s. Kingsley's maternal grandfather was believed by the family to have been of Russian Jewish or German Jewish descent, while Kingsley's maternal grandmother was of English background, and worked in the garment district of East London. His mother was born outside of marriage, and was raised by her own mother.

Ben Kingsley was born Krishna Bhanji on December 31, 1943 in Scarborough, Yorkshire, England. His father, Rahimtulla Harji Bhanji, was a Kenyan-born medical doctor, of Gujarati Indian descent, and his mother, Anna Lyna Mary (Goodman), was an English actress.

According to Kingsley, one of his fondest movie memories is watching his father go hysterical while viewing Danny Kaye as a car salesman in Knock on Wood (1954). After that his father often jokingly referred to him as the "Danny Kaye of the Family".

Ben began to act in stage plays during the 1960s. He soon became a successful stage actor, and also began to have roles in films and television. His birth name was Krishna Bhanji, but he changed his name to "Ben Kingsley" soon after gaining fame as a stage actor, fearing that a foreign name could hamper his acting career.

Made his London stage debut in 1966 as the narrator of "A Smashing Day" produced by The Beatles manager, Brian Epstein. He wrote the music for the production as well as sang and played guitar for same. After one performance, John Lennon and Ringo Starr came backstage and told him that he should go into music and that if he didn't, "he would regret it for the rest of his life." He was subsequently offered a deal by the same publishers who handled The Beatles, but he chose to remain an actor. The next year, he was invited to join the Royal Shakespeare Company and his choice was made.

Kingsley joined the Royal Shakespeare Company in 1967.

Nominated for Best Comedy Performance in the 1980 Laurence Olivier Awards for his performance in ''The Merry Wives of Windsor' but lost out to Beryl Reid.

Kingsley first earned international fame for his performance in the drama movie Gandhi (1982). His performance as Mohandas K. Gandhi earned him international fame. He won many awards - including an Academy Award for Best Actor. He also won Golden Globe, BAFTA and London Film Critics' Circle Awards.

After acting in Gandhi (1982), Ben was recognized as one of the finest British actors.

After his international fame for appearing in Gandhi (1982), Kingsley appeared in many other famous movies. His success as an actor continued.

Was awarded the Grammy Award for "Best Spoken Word or Non-Musical Recording" for "The Words of Gandhi" (1984).

Is shown being eaten by a "Grasshopper-raptor" in an episode of The Simpsons (1989).

During the late 1990s, Kingsley acted in many successful movies.

His performance as Itzhak Stern in the drama movie Schindler's List (1993) earned him a BAFTA nomination for best supporting actor.

Schindler's List (1993) won seven Academy Awards, including Best Picture.

Has appeared in three productions depicting the Exodus: Moses (1995), The Ten Commandments (2007) and Exodus: Gods and Kings (2014).

He played Sweeney Todd in the television movie The Tale of Sweeney Todd (1997), for which he was nominated for the Screen Actors' Guild Award.

Head of the 'Official Competition' jury at the 48th Berlin International Film Festival in 1998.

His performance as Don Logan in Sexy Beast (2000) is ranked #97 on Premiere magazine's 100 Greatest Performances of All Time (2006).

His other notable role was as Otto Frank in the television movie Anne Frank: The Whole Story (2001), for which he won the Screen Actors' Guild Award.

In 2002, Kingsley was appointed Knight Bachelor of the Order of the British Empire in the Queen's New Years Honours for his services to drama.

In both House of Sand and Fog (2003) and Lucky Number Slevin (2006), he plays a character who dies from having a translucent plastic bag taped over their head.

Was listed as a potential nominee on both the 2005 and 2006 Razzie Award nominating ballots. He was suggested in the Worst Supporting Actor category on the 2005 ballot for his role in the film Thunderbirds (2004). And he was suggested again the next year in the Worst Supporting Actor category of the 2006 Razzie nominating ballot for his performance in the film A Sound of Thunder (2005). He failed to receive either nomination. The very next year (2007) though, he got a Worst Supporting Actor Razzie Nomination for his performance in the film BloodRayne (2005).

On September 3, 2007, he married his fourth wife Daniela Lavender at Eynsham Hall in North Leigh, Oxfordshire.

Received an honorary degree (Doctor of Letters) from the University of Hull, Scarborough Campus, degree ceremony on July 18, 2008.

He was awarded a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6931 Hollywood Boulevard in Hollywood, California on May 27, 2010. Offering their support at the event were his son Edmund Kingsley, wife Daniela Lavender, friends Bruce Willis and Jerry Bruckheimer.

As of 2014, has appeared in four films that were nominated for the Best Picture Oscar: Gandhi (1982), Bugsy (1991), Schindler's List (1993) and Hugo (2011). Of those, Gandhi (1982) and Schindler's List (1993) won in the category.