Bollywood actress Divya Seth Shah has set Queen’s Theatre Hornchurch alive as the matriarch and mother of a birthday girl in the Rifco theatre company production of Happy Birthday Sunita.

She began in TV’s Hum Log serial and is currently shooting City of Dreams 3, The Vaccine War and Duranga 2, but is now turning to live theatre.

“I was so sure that they wouldn’t have cast someone like me,” she said. “I’ve come all the way from India, but they made everything so comfortable and made me feel welcome.” 

The play at Queen's is about Sunita’s 40th birthday that leaves the Johal family reeling. Confrontations erupt as their masks begin to slip and secrets spill out. Unexpected guests, butter-free roti and skeletons in the cupboard aren’t enough to stop them busting out some classic Punjabi shapes in the kitchen in a post-Brexit and post-pandemic world. 

Joining Divya are Bhawna Bhawsar from TV’s Casualty, The Undeclared War and EastEnders, Devesh Kishore from Last Night and Casualty, Rameet Rauli from Little English Find Me In Paris and Keiron Crook from Coronation Street. 

Tickets for Happy Birthday Sunita, running until May 27, are available from £12 from the Box Office on 01708 443333 or online at queens-theatre.co.uk