Acting on Indian Connections

Leave it to us to find the Indian connections to Operation Finale, which details the capture of Nazi mastermind Adolf Eichmann. Legendary actor Ben Kingsley, who portrays Eichmann, was born Krishna Pandit Bhanji in Yorkshire, England. His father was a doctor of Gujarati descent; his grandfather was a successful spice trader nicknamed "King Cloves," which his grandson adapted to create his screen name, Kingsley. His mother, an actress and model, may have had Russian- or German-Jewish roots. Kingsley changed his name because he was afraid his given name would hamper his career. Audiences the world over traveled with him to India through his seminal role as Gandhi, for which he won the Best Actor award in the 1982 film of the same name. He also played Jewish roles: Simon Weisenthal (Murderers Among Us,1989); Meyer Lansky (Bugsy, 1992); Itzhak Stern (Schindler's List, 1993); Moses (Moses, 1996), and Otto Frank (Anne Frank: The Whole Story, 2001).