Davood Ghadami and Amar Adatia to depart EastEnders

Davood Ghadami and Amar Adatia are both leaving the saga.

Ghadami has played the role of Khoroush ‘Kush’ Kazemi in the BBC soap since 2014, while Adatia made his Walford debut as Jags Panesar in autumn 2019.

Implying that he was axed, The Mirror notes that show bosses felt Ghadami’s storyline “had run its course” so they have planned a big one that will see him go out of the show in 2021, while Amar will be leaving much sooner as part of an upcoming storyline involving Jags’ scheming mum, Suki (Balvinder Sopal).

“Davood’s contract was up and bosses decided his storyline had run its course,” a source told The Mirror. “He’ll be missed but they’re making sure he goes out with a bang. Sometimes the cost of having a big storyline means losing big characters.”

A BBC spokesperson added: “We can confirm Davood will be leaving EastEnders when his contract comes to an end next year. Davood has been a wonderful addition to EastEnders and we wish him all the best for the future.”

Kush’s storylines over the years have included his relationship with Shabnam Masood which broke down following the stillbirth of their son and the revelation that Kush had fathered a child with Stacey Slater.

The character has also had romances with Kat Moon and Denise Fox, and mourned for his brother Shakil, who was stabbed to death in May 2018.

Digital Spy, meanwhile, has confirmed that Adatia is bowing out of his role of Jags, who arrived in Walford with his brothers Kheerat and Vinny in October 2019.

“I always knew I’d only be in the show for a set period of time when I signed up. I had just finished shooting a film and had prior commitments to promote that, but then the pandemic hit and everything understandably got put on hold. With timings all pushed back, I was more than happy stay a little bit longer to make sure that we wrapped up Jags’s storyline properly,” the actor told the site.

EastEnders’ Panesar family with Jags on the left