| Ahmed Ifnaz Firag | |
| Birth Date: | 1985 1, df=y |
| Birth Place: | Male', Maldives |
| Nationality: | Maldivian |
| Occupation: | Actor, Host, Singer, Photographer, Director |
| Yearsactive: | 2019–present |
Ahmed Ifnaz Firag (born 12 January 1985) is a Maldivian film actor, director, singer, television host, fitness instructor and photographer.
After completing his primary education in Jamaluddin school, Firag enrolled in Majeediyya School for his secondary education.[1] During that time, he considered himself as an "introvert" who was too shy to showcase his acting skills, which made him firmly believe that acting would remain his "unfulfilled dream".[1] After graduation, he worked in several small time jobs until he was a forensic photographer at Maldives Police Service.[1] While serving his time at the police department, he had a keen interest in their annual "entertainment night" show, where he performed dance shows in front of big crowd.[1]
Since Firag had no intention to work at police for a lifetime service, he left the industry after five years of service.[2] In 2010, he started working at a photography studio owned by one of his friends, which gave him the opportunity to feature in an advertisement, by his friend, Ahmed Rilwan, a blogger and reporter.[1] However, due to several personal reasons, they were forced to shut down the studio.[2] A year later, Rilwan further paved Firag's way into the industry by providing him a chance to host a talk show Chill Out with Coke from DhiTV, which was perceived by the audience as a "cool time pass" from the hardcore political contents.[1] After working at DhiTV, he next joined another local TV channel VTV.[1]
While working at VTV, he was featured in director Ilyas Waheed's mini video drama series, Kushuge Hafaraaiy by playing a negative role.[1] Impressed by his performance, Waheed offered him to play the lead role in his debut feature film Bavathi (2019). Apart from playing the role of a fitness instructor, he worked as the project's assistant director.[1] Upon release, the film received positive reviews from critics where Ifraz Ali from Dho? applauded Firaq for playing his role to perfection and challenging all recent newcomers.[3] Aminath Luba reviewing from Sun echoed similar sentiments, picking Firag as the "surprising element" from the crew where "he left no room to challenge his acting ability".[4] Following the success, he next collaborated with Waheed for a four-part anthology web series Mazloom which was considered another "recent benchmark project" in the industry. Ahmed Rasheed from MuniAvas praised the performance of Firag who was seen in a "shady role later trying to prove his innocence".[5]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | Bavathi | Ibu | Also the assistant director | [6] |
| 2023 | Nina | News presenter | Special appearance Also the assistant director | [7] |
| 2023 | Free Delivery | Firaqbe | Also the assistant director and singer | [8] |
| 2024 | Kanbalhi | Akram | Also the co-director, co-producer and co-editor | [9] |
| 2024 | Lasviyas | Javee | [10] | |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | Kushuge Hafaraaiy | Dhanish | Main role | [11] |
| 2021 | Mazloom | Ahmed Maahir | Main role in "Chapter 1: Mazloom" | [12] |
| 2022 | Dharaka | Nawal | Main role; 8 episodes | [13] |
| 2023 | Fandu | Hussain | Main role; 13 episodes | [14] |
| 2023 | Yaaraa | Ifnaz | Guest role; "Episode 2" | [15] |
| Year | Film/series | Song | Lyricist(s) | Co-artist(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | Dharaka | "Dharaka" | Azhan Ibrahim, Asim Ali | Manaal Sadhath |
| 2023 | Nina | "Azza" | Mohamed Abdul Ghanee | Mariyam Ashfa |
| Free Delivery | "Free Delivery" (Promotional song) | Ilyas Waheed, Asim Ali | Hussain Samah, Aishath Humaisha Yoosuf, Ahmed Sharif | |
| "You I Ah" | Shaheedha Mohamed | |||
| "Dhuvey Dhuvey" | Ahmed Sharif | |||