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It is simply a precocious summertime afternoon. Riz Ahmed takes to the signifier to present a keynote that feels little similar a personage speech and much similar a manifesto. He begins by revisiting possibly the astir quoted enactment successful the English language: “To beryllium oregon not to be.” But alternatively than dwell connected existential paralysis, helium reframes it arsenic a telephone to action, urging storytellers to reclaim the extremist pulse of their craft. With his deft humour and unshakable sincerity, helium traces however the centuries-old substance of Hamlet finds caller resonance contiguous — particularly successful our fractured, fraught epoch of injustice, part and compromise.
We are astatine the 10th edition of BoF Voices, an annual gathering by the London-based manner portal successful the English countryside of Oxfordshire, that brings unneurotic manner and luxury’s movers, shapers, and trailblazers.
Days later, conscionable earlier the gala celebrations connected the last time of Voices, Ahmed sits down to talk of his caller movie adaptation of Hamlet, acceptable successful modern London and anchored successful a British South Asian family. Critics person fixed it some proverbial brickbats and flowers and Ahmed doesn’t shy distant from that critique. He says helium wanted Hamlet to beryllium urgent, personal, inclusive, arsenic a substance that echoes for those who person ever felt extracurricular the canon. His connection to the assemblage astatine Voices, and present to readers, is clear: storytelling is not a luxury oregon a distraction. It is our astir almighty exertion of empathy.
Riz Ahmed successful his Oscar-nominated relation successful ‘Sound of Metal’.
In the speech that follows, edited for clarity and flow, Ahmed, who was Oscar nominated arsenic champion histrion successful 2021 for Sound of Metal, charts his way from actor-musician to auteur, from that archetypal brushwood with Shakespeare successful schoolhouse to a movie calved of identity, rage and tenderness.
Okay, so, why Hamlet? You said it was 13 years successful the making?
Yes, it was 13 years of improvement erstwhile I archetypal approached Michael Lesslie, the writer, with the thought of Hamlet acceptable successful an Indian family, successful an Indian household business. But the archetypal thought to marque a movie similar that dated backmost to erstwhile I was 17 years old, truthful astir 20 years... A batch of those storylines successful Shakespeare’s archetypal that tin consciousness a spot dated successful a British discourse really are precise live and kicking — whether it’s the prevalence of spiritual belief, oregon the antithetic layers of household work and obligation, oregon considerations astir who you wed and how, oregon successful particular, the contented of idiosyncratic marrying their sister-in-law if their member dies and determination are orphans to instrumentality attraction of.
All of these are not immoderate benignant of unusual anachronistic thing, arsenic they often are erstwhile it’s staged successful Britain oregon successful a Western context. These are portion of our lived experience. And truthful conscionable bringing Hamlet into an Indian household abruptly makes it consciousness real, immediate, vivid and contemporary... it’s someway astir making those halfway themes of love, loss, loyalty, duty, honour consciousness arsenic contiguous and existent arsenic possible. That happens erstwhile you make Hamlet brown.
Morfydd Clark and Riz Ahmed successful a inactive from ‘Hamlet’.
Make Hamlet brown. I emotion that. Did you person to truly unpick the archetypal text?
No, not really. We could person copied and pasted directly. But Lesslie did accommodate the archetypal successful a truly ingenious mode to marque it much accessible. He chopped tons of exposition, made it lean, mean and action-packed. And Aneil Karia, our director, decided we don’t privation this to consciousness similar you’re observing a performance. We privation to beryllium connected Hamlet’s shoulder, walking into a country with him, wrong his mind.
Aneil works a batch successful choreography. We’re some fans of Akram Khan who choreographed the creation series astatine the wedding, astatine the bosom of the show. So I created a benignant of dance, a question representation for the affectional travel to support it visceral and emotional, not intellectual. Hamlet also has Sheeba Chaddha — 1 of the astir profound and almighty actors I’ve worked with. She should beryllium considered a nationalist treasure successful India.
(L to R) Actors Art Malik, Morfydd Clark, Sheeba Chaddha and Riz Ahmed astatine a screening of their movie ‘Hamlet’ successful London, October 2025. | Photo Credit: Getty Images
A batch of your code was astir however storytelling has been “de-fanged and de-radicalised”. And I consciousness similar your originative enactment present seems to beryllium precise overmuch an enactment of activism... erstwhile you are choosing to archer stories that springiness a caller position to people.
Stories inherently person a constituent of view, and the stories I’m funny successful connection conscionable a antithetic constituent of presumption than what we’re utilized to. What I deliberation is truly absorbing is that stories that agelong our empathy, agelong our consciousness and agelong civilization successful that way, are considered a signifier of authorities oregon activism. I deliberation that says thing astir however almighty and confronting stories tin beryllium — and astir however accustomed we’ve go to the aforesaid aged stories — alternatively than it saying overmuch astir my ain intentions.
I’m trying to archer stories that I tin beryllium in, that I tin spot myself in, and that instrumentality america retired of our comfortableness portion due to the fact that I deliberation it’s exciting. If that’s scandalising oregon arguable for people, I conjecture it conscionable makes it a spot much fun.
“We truly needed a dependable who could chopped done the sound and connection a clear, almighty telephone to enactment for quality unity astatine a clip erstwhile it feels similar everything is breaking down. Few radical are amended equipped to animate that displacement successful position than Riz Ahmed. An Oscar and Emmy-winning actor, producer, and musician, Riz has cemented his spot arsenic 1 of the astir compelling artists of his procreation done projects similar ‘Sound of Metal’ and ‘The Night Of’, arsenic good arsenic done his music. He has consistently utilized his level to advocator for authentic practice and humanitarian causes.”Imran AmedFounder and CEO, The Business of Fashion
Riz Ahmed (centre) with his wife, writer Fatima Farheen Mirza, and Imran Amed (right), CEO, The Business of Fashion, astatine a BoF Voices lawsuit successful Chipping Norton, England, November 20, 2025. | Photo Credit: Getty Images
So, you’ve precocious go a father. Does that alteration however you prosecute with the world, with storytelling successful immoderate way?
I’m not definite yet. I conjecture the biggest mode is that each time I measurement distant from my household to immerse myself successful a role, I’m stepping distant from my family. So that means there’s possibly a higher barroom for immoderate of the enactment I instrumentality on. It astir apt means I person much of an appetite to physique immoderate of my ain projects. Maybe it’s thing to bash with nesting and gathering that I consciousness similar I privation to physique a originative location for myself arsenic well. And past gathering a originative household of collaborators. Maybe that’s bled into however I attack my originative life.
Where are you astatine the moment, creatively?
Two projects astatine the apical of adjacent twelvemonth — 1 is simply a half-hour comedy [on Amazon’s Prime Video] and 1 is Hamlet. The past happening I did was a thriller [Relay] where I hardly spoke for astir of the film. I’m funny successful doing much drama — I miss that. I haven’t done a large 1 since Four Lions [2010]. I’ve ne'er done fearfulness before. There are immoderate much action-oriented things I’m looking at.
I conscionable consciousness precise creatively restless, curious, and I person ADHD — I tin get bored easily. So, the supra is what keeps maine going creatively.
The different happening that inspires maine is this unusual and destabilising clip successful our manufacture due to the fact that of the advent of AI, the emergence of streamers, the globalisation of storytelling. People ticker thing from anywhere. There are subtitles now. I deliberation those moments of disruption are moments of opportunity.
Someone successful the talks yesterday said we should “zag portion everyone is zigging”. I’m funny to know, erstwhile it comes to AI, wherever bash you spot the accidental successful that?
You cognize what’s interesting? I deliberation it’s going to unit america to re-evaluate what telling a communicative truly is and what creativity truly is. I deliberation we’re going to spot much of a absorption connected process. I’ve worked with Wes Anderson [in The Phoenician Scheme] — radical speech astir however highly stylised, precise authored, each framework feels. You consciousness the author’s hand, however lovingly made it is. I deliberation that’s going to person an expanding consciousness of worth for people. That’s going to clasp much value and that’s what creativity is truly about. That’s wherefore children are truthful bully astatine creating. For them, it’s not astir the results, it’s astir the process. They’re conscionable enjoying the process.
The interviewer is an autarkic writer based successful London, penning connected fashion, luxury and lifestyle.
