Liraz Charhi | |
|---|---|
 Israeli actors wife-and-husband Liraz Charhi and Tom Avni in 2021 | |
| Background information | |
| Born | May 31, 1978 Ramla, Israel |
| Origin | Israel |
| Genres | Israeli Hebrew music, Iranian music[1] |
| Occupation(s) | Singer, actress |
| Instrument(s) | Vocals |
| Years active | 2004–present |
Liraz Charhi (Hebrew: לירז צ'רכי; May 31, 1978) is an Israeli actress, singer and dancer.
Charhi was born in Ramla, Israel, to an Iranian Jewish family.[2] Her aunt is Israeli singer and actress Rita.
She was enlisted as a soldier to the Israel Defense Forces, serving in the military band of the Education and Youth Corps, until 1999.[3]
Charhi began singing and performing at the age of 6,[4] and made her debut as stage actress at the Habima National Theatre, where she worked professionally from 11 to 14; then she studied at the Beit Zvi Stage Arts School.[5] She appeared in the Israeli TV series Ha-Masa'it in 2002 and gained further attention after a nomination by the Israeli Film Academy (Ophir Award) for her role in the 2004 film Turn Left at the End of the World (Sof Ha'Olam Smola). She was invited to the Israel Film Festival in Los Angeles in 2006, and afterwards started pursuing a career in Hollywood.[6]
Charhi has since become known for her roles in the French mini TV series Revivre, and the films, Fair Game (2010)[7] and A Late Quartet (2012) in which she played the jogger and flamenco dancing girlfriend of Philip Seymour Hoffman.
As a singer she has released the singles "Od Tzohorayim" and "Al Tafsik" which have been played on radio in Israel.[5] Charhi's first album sung in Persian, Naz, was released in 2018.[8]
In November 2020, Charhi's second Persian album, titled Zan (meaning "woman"), was released on Glitterbeat Records in collaboration with Raman Loveworld and some other Iranian artists. Some artists collaborated anonymously, and some have joined the project publicly, despite the risks involved in collaborating with an Israeli artist. The first release from the album was "Injah".[8][9]
In 2020, she played Yael Kadosh, an Israeli Mossad agent in the Israeli espionage television series Tehran (Hebrew: טהרן), written by Zonder and Omri Shenhar and directed by Daniel Syrkin. The series is about the Iran–Israel proxy conflict; and it premiered in Israel on 22 June 2020 and on 25 September 2020 internationally on Apple TV+.[10]
She was married to Israeli composer and conductor Ziv "Kojo" Cojocaru from 2004 to 2010.[11] She married Israeli actor Tom Avni in 2013[citation needed], and they have two daughters.[3][12]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | Fair Game | Dr. Zahraa | |
| 2011-2013 | Sabri Maranan | Canarit, Adam's date | 2 episodes |
| 2012 | A Late Quartet | Pilar | |
| 2020 | Tehran | Yael Kadosh | Main role |
| TBA | The Rental 2 | Agent Berenice | Upcoming sequel |
