Renu Arora is an award-winning sit down artist - actor, singer, writer and composer - and a public figure of South Asian heritage, with a body of work spanning over two decades.
Disabled following a near-death experience in 2017, Renu refused to let this define or limit her, continuing her 20-year career collaborating with world-class organisations including the RSC, BBC and Royal Literary Fund. In 2026, she won The Peggy Ramsay Award for her original work The Burgundy Book.
As she commented in the Guardian, “I came to realise that the artistry is all still there… So the best thing to do would be to repurpose my career and define myself as a sit-down artist, which is what I did.”
Alongside her creative work, Renu infuses accessible practices into the arts industry. For example, as a founding member of the RSC’s Freelance Consultation Group, she ensured disabled voices and stories were embedded within the company’s equity, diversity, justice and inclusion policy.
“Renu Arora’s Madame [LaVaughn] is the high point of the production” - Susannah Clapp, The Guardian (Reviewing The Magician’s Elephant, RSC)
Renu Arora to pen show about near-death experience thanks to Peggy Ramsay award and Arts Council Investment
Renu Arora, the award winning South Asian disabled actor, singer, writer and composer will develop a new musical, The Burgundy Book, based on her life-altering accident and near-death experience, after winning the Peggy Ramsay Award.
Recent Appearances & Projects
Read Arora’s commission for the Royal Literary Fund
‘From the Canyons We Create’ about the artist Frida Khalo.
BBC Sideways Episode
Renu Arora speaks with host Matthew Syed about the brain’s incredible capacity to respond to trauma and how we can shift our perspectives on pain.
Liferaft into Tomorrow
Renu’s newest single, Liferaft into Tomorrow, as featured on the BBC was released to mark World Trauma Day, 2025.
“Great pathos, comedic talent, and a dazzling voice”
– Marc Teitler, Composer (The Magician’s Elephant, RSC)
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“Renu Arora’s Madame [LaVaughn] is the high point of the production”
- Susannah Clapp, The Guardian
(Reviewing The Magician’s Elephant, RSC)
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“We will find it hard to forget the wonderful Renu Arora’s Madame LaVaughn”
- Birmingham Live
(Reviewing The Magician’s Elephant, RSC)
Renu as Madame LeVaughn
Rehearsal for Running Water, supported by Bristol Old Vic and supporting Women’s Aid survivors of Domestic Abuse.
Whose Sari Now? Rani Moorty - Vocal Soundtrack and sung by Renu Arora
Whose Sari Now? Rani Moorty - Vocal Soundtrack and sung by Renu Arora (2)
The Magician's Elephant 1
The Magician's Elephant 2
Women of Hope, Tamasha Theatre. Directed, wrote soundtrack, sang/recorded. Arts Council funded. Partnered with Amnesty International for the show.
The Crossing, Tamasha Theatre commission and production. Winner of the Mosaic Bursary. Story about partition. Co-directed, verbatim, wrote music and devised.
Collaborators
Erica Whyman
Marc Teitler
Sita Brahmachari
Pete Dennis
Sofya Romanova