Dharmalingam was born in Maidstone, Kent, of Indo-Trinidadian and Sri Lankan heritage.
[2] After joining the National Youth Theatre in 1998, he obtained a BA in performing arts at the University of Salford in 2002.
[3][4] His notable television portrayals include Tariq Mistry in the Channel 4 soap opera Hollyoaks (2010), James Cutler in the BBC One legal drama The Split (2018–2022), Nik Katira in the Australian psychological mystery Wakefield (2021).
[5][6][7][1] He has appeared in numerous theatre productions, including Broadway's The History Boys (2006) and West End's Hamlet (2015).
[8][9][10] Dharmalingam's minor TV roles include programmes such as The Bill, New Tricks, Coronation Street, Casualty, Doctor Who, Rellik, Electric Dreams and Our Girl.