British Asian actor Naveen Andrews, most famous for his role in the BBC drama 'Buddha of Suburbia', is to star in a major new network drama on America's ABC. He plays a Middle Eastern man in the series, titled 'Lost', which will start in September.

Lost is about a group of 48 survivors who get stuck on a tropical island and have to work together to survive. In an interview the creator J.J. Abrams said it was designed to "bring out the very best and the very worst in the people who are lost."

Naveen Andrews plays Sayid, a Middle Eastern man who must wrestle with the racial profiling directed at him by some of his fellow survivors. The actor told AiM recently that he has moved to the USA because opportunities for non-white actors were greater out there.

Andrews has a major part in Gurinder Chadha's upcoming movie Bride and Prejudice. He has previously been in the English Patient, Kama Sutra: A Tale of Love and Bombay Boys amongst others.

The publicity material for the series states:

Out of the blackness the first thing Jack senses is pain. Then burning sun. A Bamboo forest. Smoke. Screams. With a rush comes the horrible awareness that the plane he was on tore apart in mid-air and crashed on a Pacific island. From there it's a blur, as his doctor's instinct kicks in: people need his help.

Stripped of everything, the 48 survivors scavenge what they can from the plane for their survival. Some panic. Some pin their hopes on rescue. A few find inner strength they never knew they had-like Kate who, with no medical training, suddenly finds herself suturing the doctor's wounds. The band of friends, family, enemies and strangers must work together against the cruel weather and harsh terrain.

But the intense howls of the mysterious creatures stalking the jungle fill them all with fear. Fortunately, thanks to the calm leadership of quick-thinking Jack and level-headed Kate, they have hope. But even heroes have secrets, as the survivors will come to learn.

The series has also been bought by Channel 4 in the UK and will be broadcast next year at a primetime slot.