Sarah Hassan, East Africa rising star.

Many know her as Tanya, but her real name is Sarah Hassan  a glamours lady who was born on September 5th, 1988 on the cool shores of Mombasa, Kenya.

Sarah is one of the fastest rising young celebrities in Kenya. Born as an only child, Sarah’s had an exciting and decent childhood.

She was very loved. Her parents spoilt her with lots of treats but nonetheless they were keen on good morals and taught her that you have to work hard for whatever you want in life. My mum in particular was a bit strict and kept me grounded.
Sarah holds a Bachelor of science in Actuarial Science from the Jomo Kenyatta University.

Her first serious role in television as ‘Tanya’ of Tahidi High catapulted her to fame giving her awards for best actress at the annual Chaguo La Teeniez Awards ceremony.

She has also acted in Kenyan television series (an NTV medical drama) Saints as ‘Lora’, ‘Kamila’ in Demigods (also an NTV family drama), and as ‘Liza’ in M-Net’s ‘Changes’. She has also acted in a British NGO film called ‘I Am Slave’.

Apart from acting, Sarah has hosted a popular dance show called Sakata and is currently hosting an entertainment show called Mashariki Mix on DSTV’s channel: M-Net.

Her inmost desire is to be successful and to be awarded an Oscar. She is also motivated by the fact that it is important for her to be able to support her parents when they are retired.


She is also featured in various musics in Kenya and Africa and will from December 2013 be hosting the wedding show aired by citizen television.

However, one of the challenges Sarah constantly faces is being type casted, meaning, repeatedly assigned to the same kind of role based on assumed personality and appearance.

She believes that being a good actress involves being versatile and being able to transform and play any character and hence is working on altering the type casted trend.

Her advice to upcoming actors in her own words is “ Believe in yourself and in God. Take your particular role seriously by doing research about your specific character, listen to your director, follow instructions, be ready to learn and most of all, never give up!”

E-Profile of Sarah Hussan aka Tanya.