Manjinder was born in Coventry, to a car factory worker and his wife who had come to England from the Punjab. Manjinder describes her parents as " very liberal" - her father was involved in the Indian Workers Association - bringing herself and her sister up "like boys " - she has a brother - as well as being massively into the arts and encouraging of her acting ambitions. She began acting at the Belgrade Youth Theatre in Coventry before becoming an artistic director of Pangran Dance Theatre and going on to study contemporary dance at De Montfort University, Leicester.. She made her television debut in 1999 in 'Holby City' and has made her fair share of performances in medically-themed dramas - 'Monroe', 'Call the Midwife', 'Doctors' and the sitcom 'Green Wing' before, in 2015, becoming the new pathologist in the long-running 'Midsomer Murders' . Away from the small screen Manjinder was nominated for best actress for the film 'The Arbor' and was also named one of Screen International's Stars of tomorrow in 2007, the same year that she met her husband writer/director Neil Biswas, with whom she has two children. She is herself an acclaimed writer, in 2003 penning the play 'Glow' about a female boxer, for the touring company 'Theatre Centre'. In 2008 she wrote and directed a short film 'Forgive', following this up in 2012 with another film 'Out of Darkness' starring Tom Hiddleston. In 2016 she completed another short film 'With Love from Calais' about the refugee crisis.