Biography

Rajiv Shah is an award-winning actor, screenwriter, and filmmaker known for complex, commanding characters who operate at the intersection of power and vulnerability - men who carry charisma, danger, and something deeply fractured underneath.

He will next be seen in the upcoming feature films, "The Subscriber" and "Night Driver" opposite Armie Hammer. Shah most recently led the psychological short, "The Spear Carrier," playing David, an overlooked actor whose need to be seen builds toward a breaking point on opening night of "Macbeth" opposite Jim Beaver ("Deadwood", "Supernatural"). The role reflects Shah’s continued interest in character-driven stories that live beneath the surface, where emotional shifts occur quietly but carry significant weight.

A produced screenwriter, Shah wrote the feature film "Run the Tide" (Orion Pictures / Momentum Pictures, 2016), starring Taylor Lautner and Constance Zimmer, directed by Soham Mehta. The script won the Grand Jury Prize at the LA Asian Pacific Film Festival and was a finalist in Final Draft's Big Break competition. Shah co-wrote and directed the short film "Carry Tiger to Mountain," which won the Showtime Networks Tony Cox Screenwriting Award at the Nantucket Film Festival and received a Best Dramatic Short nomination at the USA Film Festival. His writing has been recognized by the Academy Nicholl Fellowship, Sundance Lab, HBO, Austin Film Festival, ScreenCraft, Page Awards, IFP Emerging Narrative Fellowship, and Ava DuVernay's Diverse Voices program.

As an actor, Shah's stage work spans Campo Santo, San Jose Stage Company, Lorraine Hansberry Theater, Will Geer Theatricum Botanicum, and the Actors Reading Collective, where he appeared in the West Coast premiere of Annie Baker's "The Antipodes." He originated roles in multiple Philip Kan Gotanda plays and received the Outstanding Featured Performance in a Drama award from StageSceneLA for "A Perfect Ganesh." He is represented by The Zachary Co. and holds dual union status as a member of SAG-AFTRA and AEA.

Shah chaired the SAG-AFTRA Northern California Conservatory and served on its board while additionally serving on the national Asian Pacific American Media (APAM) Committee from 2023-2025. He continues to develop original projects including "808," a Hawaiian street gang drama with Rena Owen (Once Were Warriors, Moana) and Kenny Johnson (CBS's SWAT) attached to star.