Background
He was born in Lyallpur, now called Faisalabad, British India (now in Pakistan).
He was born in Lyallpur, now called Faisalabad, British India (now in Pakistan).
Royal Academy of Dramatic Artist
He spent his early life in Kasur and Lahore. He was trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts in London from 1953-1956. After stage roles in Long Day"s Journey Into Night and Julius Caesar, he made his West End debut in A Passage to India in 1960.
He made his film debut in, playing the role of Tafas (the Arab guide who is shot by Omar Sharif for drinking water from the wrong well).
He then made numerous television and film appearances, and starred as Doctor Aziz in the British Broadcasting Corporation"s television version of A Passage to India (Play of the Month, 1965). He returned to Pakistan in the late 1960s.
There he founded and ran the PIA Arts and Dance Academy, and hosted his own television talk show. Around this time, he met and subsequently (in 1973) married the classical dancer Naheed Siddiqui.
During the 1980s Zia worked in Birmingham, Great Britain, where he produced Central Television"s flagship multicultural programme Here and Now by Central Independent Television.
He has since traveled the world giving Urdu poetry and prose recitations, and is considered the foremost reader of Urdu literature. In addition, he is also famed for his readings of English letters and literature. In February 2005 President Pervez Musharraf invited Mohyeddin to act as Chairman of the new National Academy of Performing Arts in Karachi.
To this date, despite his growing age, Zia is still active among Pakistani media as a speaker and hosts several television programes both for National and Private Channels.
He is also involved in narrating some abstract short films and commercials. The Adventures of Sir Francis Drake (7 January 1962 episode "Visit to Spain").
Danger Manitoba (1966) The Avengers (1966) Adam Adamant Lives! (1967) Jackanory (1967) Manitoba in a Suitcase (1968) The Champions (1969) Hadleigh (1969) Detective (12 October 1969 episode Inspector Ghote Hunts the Peacock as Inspector Ghote) Z-Cars (1978) Gangsters (1978) Death of a Princess (1980) Minder (1980) The Jewel in the Crown (1984) Bergerac (1984) Family Pride (1991-1992) Dhun Hamari Tumharay Naam Hui (1999).