Rashid Suhrawardy was born in 1939, the son of Hussain Shaheed Suhrawardy - future Prime Minister of Pakistan and the last Chief Minister of United Bengal; his mother was Russian, of Polish descent. He was educated in Oxford and became a renowned actor with the Royal Shakespeare Company, adopting the anglicised Robert "Bob" Ashby; however he retained a fierce loyalty to his father's beliefs, defending the Bangladeshi cause in London and considered by many to be a role model for future generations.

As well as playing the Borad in Timelash, he appeared in Kavanagh QC, Gentlemen and Players, Love Potion, and Howards' Way. He also played Nehru opposite Christopher Lee in Jinnah.

He was the boyfriend of Louise Jameson during her time as Leela.