Ayad Akhtar

Plays include "The Invisible Hand" (Repertory Theater of St Louis). Also a novelist, he is the author of American Dervish, a novel published by Little, Brown & Co. He co-wrote and starred in "The War Within" (Magnolia Pictures), released internationally and nominated for an Independent Spirit Award for Best Screenplay. As an actor, he starred as Neel Kashkari in HBO's adaptation of Andrew Ross Sorkin's "Too Big to Fail." He studied at Brown University and Columbia University's School of the Arts.

photo credit: Nina Subin