Zakeeya Patel

Zakeeya Patel is a South African born actress living in Los Angles. She is best known for her roles in the Netflix original series Shadow (2019), Showmax's thriller The Girl from St. Agnes (2019), the comedy Material (2012) and for playing the gutsy and hot-blooded Samantha Sharma in one of South Africa's favorite soap operas: Isidingo: The Need (2005). She is the champion of the 6th season of Strictly Come Dancing (2006) - Strictly Come Dancing South Africa and has appeared in shows like High Rollers (2013), The Docket (2018) and 3 Days to Go (2019). Going back to her roots in theater, Zakeeya worked with acclaimed American activist and writer Eve Ensler on her play 'Emotional Creature' in 2014. She holds a BA Honors in Theater and Performance from The University of Cape Town and 2020 sees her star in the sequel to Material (2012), New Material (2020).