Kaleem Zafar is a versatile actor, director, writer, lyricist, music composer, and acting coach, widely recognized as an expert in children’s theatre. Born in Mathura, Uttar Pradesh, he began his creative journey in the fifth grade with the renowned group Sanket Rang Toli. He later became a founder member and secretary of the Covalent Theatre Group. After completing his graduation, he pursued a one-year diploma course followed by a one-year internship at the Madhya Pradesh School of Drama. He further refined his craft with a Postgraduate Diploma in Acting from the Intercultural Theatre Institute, Singapore.

With over 15 years of teaching experience, Kaleem has worked as an acting teacher, coach, and facilitator across India and internationally. He has collaborated with NGOs, schools, colleges, corporates, and film industries, conducting workshops on children’s theatre, adult theatre, and acting. Over the course of his career, he has performed in nearly 1,000 shows across 60–70 plays.

Kaleem’s credits include his tenure as an actor, teacher, facilitator, and festival coordinator with the National School of Drama’s Theatre in Education Company (New Delhi). In this role, he played an active part in several national theatre festivals, contributing both as a performer and coordinator. His experience at NSD TIE highlights his ability to balance multiple creative and administrative roles.

He has also worked with several distinguished theatre directors in India, including Bansi Kaul, Sanjay Upadhyay, Abdul Latif Khatana, the late Alok Chatterjee, Raghuvir Yadav, Govind Namdev, Vani Tripathi, Dinesh Khanna, and Feisal Alkazi, as well as international directors such as Simon Stollery, T. Sasitharan, Aarne Neeme, Koh Wan Ching, and Chin Huat.

Beyond theatre, Kaleem has made a mark on screen through his work in Before Life After Death, Delhi Crime, Matto Ki Cycle (with Prakash Jha), and Gaman. In his upcoming release Lalaat, he not only performed but also served as the acting coach for Sagarika Ghatke. His forthcoming projects include Dina 2.0 and several others in development.

Driven by his passion for arts education, Kaleem has written numerous plays and songs for the stage. He continues to teach at the Barry John Acting Studio in Mumbai and serves as the Founder Trustee of Own Space, a trust dedicated to promoting arts and culture.