Tamwar Masood is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Himesh Patel. He made his first appearance on 1 October 2007. On 12 March 2016, it was announced that Patel would be leaving the show, with Tamwar making his final appearance alongside Nancy Carter (Maddy Hill) on 22 April 2016. After more than three years together, he married Nancy off-screen, in Australia, in 2019. They divorced in 2022, after she returned to Albert Square without him.
Creation and development Background Tamwar Masood was one of several Asian characters introduced in 2007 by executive producer Diederick Santer."", www.asiansinmedia.org. URL last accessed 16 October 2007. He was first seen in October 2007. Tamwar was the third character in the Masood family to make an appearance on-screen, joining the already established Zainab, and Shabnam (his mother and sister) who both appeared in July 2007. The core family was completed by the introduction of Tamwar's father, Masood Ahmed, a few weeks later. The Masoods were the first Muslim family to join the show since the Karims, who appeared between 1987 and 1990, and they were the first Asian family to be introduced since the unsuccessful Ferreira family in 2003. Panned by critics and viewers, the Ferreiras were dismissed as unrealistic by the Asian community in the UK, and were eventually axed in 2005."Unrealistic’ Ferreira family dismissed by Asian viewers ", The Stage. URL last accessed 16 October 2007."Unrealistic’ EastEnder accuses BBC of discrimination", Digital Spy. URL last accessed 16 October 2007.
The introduction of more ethnic minority characters is part of producer Diederick Santer's plan to "diversify", to make EastEnders "feel more 21st century"."The art of storytelling", The Guardian. URL last accessed 27 March 2007. Prior to 2007, EastEnders was heavily criticised by the Commission for Racial Equality (CRE), for not representing the East End's real "ethnic make-up". It was suggested that the average proportion of visible minority faces on EastEnders was substantially lower than the actual ethnic minority population in East London boroughs, and it therefore reflected the East End in the 1960s, not the East End of the 2000s. Furthermore, it was suggested that an element of "tokenism" and stereotyping surrounded many of the minority characters in EastEnders. The expansion of minority representation in EastEnders provides "more opportunities for audience identification with its characters, hence a wider appeal.""EastEnders ", www.museum.tv. URL last accessed 27 March 2007. Trevor Phillips, CRE chair, has said: "balanced representation of ethnic minority communities in the media matters. The industry has a key part to play in this, it is a powerful tool and can go a long way towards helping to build an integrated society.""Coronation Street and EastEnders battle it out for coveted CRE Race In the Media Award", cre.gov.uk. URL last accessed 27 March 2007.
Casting
The then-17-year-old actor, Himesh Patel, was cast in the role of Tamwar Masood. Like the character he plays, Patel is the son of a postmistress and he is also a former paperboy."Special delivery: paperboy lands EastEnders post ", The Hunts Post. URL last accessed 16 October 2007. He has commented: "I was so nervous before I went for the audition - my biggest role before was in plays at school but they made us feel very welcome…I was thrilled when I learned that I had got the part…[I] have been avidly watching EastEnders to get up to speed with all the characters … Being in EastEnders is such a great start to my career and working with some amazing actors is fantastic. Sometimes I only get the scripts a couple of days before filming, so it can be a bit stressful learning the lines but I'm managing so far … The whole EastEnders 'family' has been very helpful, and I was made to feel at home from the moment I arrived.
Patel has revealed that he was already a "big fan" of the actors who play his on-screen mother and father, Nina Wadia and Nitin Ganatra: "I was a big fan of Nina and Nitin already, and suddenly to find myself working with such experienced and respected actors was like a dream come true." Steve Biggs, the director of the Cambridge-based "Young Actors Company", where Patel trained, has said "Apart from being an excellent actor, Himesh is a very likeable and down-to-earth young man, who I'm sure will prove to be an absolute hit, both on and off screen". Wadia, who plays Patel's on-screen mother, has added: "I'm looking forward to working with my on-screen son, Himesh Patel."
Personality Himesh Patel has described his character: "Tamwar is a quiet boy who could be described as a geek but he is quite single-minded and will do what he wants". Reports in 2007 claimed that Tamwar was to struggle with his sexual identity and be the first homosexual Muslim character featured on a British soap opera. This, however, was denied by the BBC."EastEnders wedding gossip ", Digital Spy. URL last accessed 28 October 2007. It has later come apparent that this role has been taken by his older brother, Syed Masood.
Storyline development One of the character's storylines involved his secret website where he makes fun of other EastEnders characters. The site, Rude Masood, was shown on screen briefly in October 2009. The actual website subsequently had 186,432 views in a day. Santer commented "It's always fun to find ways to tell our stories and celebrate our characters beyond the show itself. Hopefully, the many people that have found Tamwar's special website will derive big enjoyment from Himesh Patel's extraordinary work. I'm grateful to our very talented webteam – and to Himesh and our writers – for putting this together."
In October 2010, Tamwar grows tired of being single and dates Afia Khan (Meryl Fernandes) but his parents ban them from seeing each other due to history with Afia's father. Patel felt that Tamwar's loneliness was related to his brother Syed's relationship with Christian Clarke (John Partridge), his friend Darren Miller's (Charlie G. Hawkins) relationship with Jodie Gold (Kylie Babbington) and the fact he was left at home with his parents. Tamwar first meets Afia in 2009 but lies that he is attending Oxford University so she dumps him. Patel said Tamwar is grateful for his second chance with Afia, and said there is "a split-second change in Tamwar and his attitude." He added that the storyline is "new territory" for Tamwar, as he has never been part of the family's problems before and feels a sense of guilt for bringing a new problem.
Departure On 12 March 2016, it was announced that Tamwar and his girlfriend, Nancy Carter (Maddy Hill) would be leaving the show. Of his departure, Patel said he was "looking forward to new challenges, perhaps on the stage or behind the camera. Whatever awaits me, I'll miss my family at EastEnders immensely - they've watched me grow from boy to man and supported me every step of the way. It's been a true privilege to work alongside them." Both characters made their last appearances on 22 April 2016.
Storylines Tamwar is a studious fellow who works hard on his studies to please his parents, Zainab Masood (Nina Wadia) and Masood Ahmed (Nitin Ganatra). They are delighted when he achieves five A's during his AS Level exams, with Zainab boasting that Tamwar will be attempting to get a place at either Cambridge or Oxford University. Tamwar uses his intellect to help his parents set up their own business, Masala Masood, a Pakistani take away service. This evolves into a fast food market stall, which Tamwar helps run with his friend Waseem (Richard Charles). Tamwar's secrecy concerns his mother, and she concludes that he is gay, but it transpires that Tamwar is hiding his new hobby as a stand up comic. He shocks his mother by announcing that he wants to pursue comedy as a career, but later retracts and agrees to apply to Oxford. However, he fails to achieve the grades he needs for his place at Oxford, but does not confess this to his family. When his brother Syed Masood's (Marc Elliott) fiancée Amira Shah (Preeya Kalidas) forces Tamwar to do so, he confesses to his family that he cannot go to university. He then sets up his own website, Rude Masood, where he impersonates Walford's residents Dot Branning (June Brown), Peggy Mitchell (Barabra Windsor), Pat Evans (Pam St Clement) and Patrick Trueman (Rudolph Walker).
At Syed and Amira's wedding, Tamwar meets up with Afia Khan (Meryl Fernandes). He tells her he has never kissed a girl, so she kisses him. A few days later, they go out to lunch, and Tamwar ends their brief romance. When he receives his A level resit results, they are worse than the first time he took them, so he decides to give up trying to go to university. When Syed and Christian Clarke (John Partridge) begin a gay relationship, Tamwar is angry with his mother for acting like Syed is dead, and is generally supportive of Syed. Tamwar starts to grow tired of being single, especially as his best friend Darren Miller (Charlie G. Hawkins) is in a relationship with Jodie Gold (Kylie Babbington). He starts seeing Afia again and meets her father Yusef Khan (Ace Bhatti) who approves of him. Yusef arranges to meet Zainab and Masood, but he is revealed to be Zainab's ex-husband whose family set her on fire for infidelity. Tamwar tells Afia they cannot see each other again. The next day Afia visits Tamwar and tries to persuade him to reconsider. Tamwar refuses, saying he has to respect the will of his parents. Zainab and Masood buy the local Indian restaurant, the Argee Bhajee, saying it is for Tamwar to run, but he does not want it. Syed arranges for Afia to see Tamwar, and they spend time alone in the restaurant. Masood discovers this and again bans Tamwar from seeing her. However, they continue to see each other, and Masood and Zainab allow it, hoping it will fizzle out, until Afia continues to mention her father, so Masood asks her to break up with Tamwar. She blames her father so Tamwar asks Masood to speak to him. When Yusef discovers they are still seeing each other, he assumes they are to marry and gives his blessing, much to Masood and Zainab's despair. They arrange the mangni (engagement party) and Yusef and Afia decide it should be a big party.
When Masood accuses Afia of lying that she has never been with anyone before Tamwar, Afia fears it will ruin their relationship. Although Masood realises he has made a mistake, Tamwar and Afia marry in secret on the day before their mangni. At the mangni, Tamwar is about to tell his family that they are already married when they are interrupted by Syed's entrance and the roof collapsing. They then decide against telling anyone as Tamwar's parents are facing financial difficulties. However, when the new couple learn that Masood kidnapped Yusef and threatened him, this leads to Masood being banned from the couple's mehndi, causing a strain between Tamwar and his father. However, at the mehndi, Tamwar and Afia admit their secret marriage to the family (including Masood who turns up uninvited), and the couple begin living with each other at the Masood family home.