Sir Ben Kingsley, CBE (born December 31, 1943) is a British actor. He is perhaps best known for his portrayal of Mohandas Gandhi in Richard Attenborough's 1982 film Gandhi, for which he won the Academy Award for Best Actor and the Golden Globe Award for New Star Of The Year - Actor, but also for portraying Itzhak Stern in the Academy Award winning film Schindler's List.

Educated at Manchester Grammar School.

Son of a GP.

Knighted by Queen Elizabeth II in the New Year's Eve Honors List 2001.

Derived his stage name from his grandfather's nickname, "Clove King." His grandfather was a spice trader in Zanzibar.

Is of half Indian and half English descent. His father, Rahimtulla Harji Bhanji, was a Kenyan-born physician of Indian descent while his mother, Anna Lyna Mary Bhanji, was an English-born fashion model of Jewish-European extraction.

Ben Kingsley's paternal family was from the Indian state of Gujarat, the same state Mahatma Gandhi was from.

He has four children: Jasmine and Thomas Kingsley, with Angela Morant; and Edmund Kingsley and Ferdinand Kingsley, with Alison Sutcliffe.

Made his London stage debut in 1966 as the narrator of "A Smashing Day" produced by The Beatles manager, Brian Epstein (I). He wrote the music for the production as well as sang and played guitar for same. After one performance, John Lennon (I) 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.

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 Sound of Thunder, A (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).

Head of jury at the Berlin International Film Festival in 1998

Was originally cast as Ephraim in Munich (2005), but later had to withdraw from the project due to scheduling conflicts.

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

Has three films on the American Film Institute's 100 Most Inspiring Movies of All Time: Searching for Bobby Fischer (1993) at #96, Gandhi (1982) at #29, and Schindler's List (1993) at #3.

At the age of ten he went busking outside a cinema in Llanelli, South Wales, with his friend Shirley Edwards.

Although he is considered the first (and only) actor to win Best Actor for his film debut, he actually had a bit part in the little-seen 1972 film "Fear is in the Key". He also had a respectable TV career before entering into movies.

The second actor of Asian descent to win an Academy Award. Miyoshi Umeki was the first.

One of eight actors of Asian descent nominated for an Academy Award in an acting category. The others are Miyoshi Umeki who won Best Supporting Actress nominated for Sayonara (1957), Sessue Hayakawa nominated for Bridge on the River Kwai, The (1957), Mako (I) nominated for Sand Pebbles, The (1966), Haing S. Ngor who won Best Supporting Actor for Killing Fields, The (1984), Pat Morita nominated for Karate Kid, The (1984), Ken Watanabe (I) nominated for Last Samurai, The (2003) and Rinko Kikuchi nominated for Babel (2006).

Married his fourth wife Daniela Barbosa de Carneiro at a country house in North Leigh in Oxfordshire in September 2007.