Nimmi Harasgama

Nimmi Harasgama
Born
Sri Lanka
OccupationActress
Years active1997–present
Awards

Nimmi Harasgama (Sinhala: නිම්මි හරස්ගම) is an actress, writer, and producer. The British National Television Awards nominated her for best "Drama Performance" for her portrayal of Nurse Mari in ITV's The Good Karma Hospital.[1] She made her screen-debut through the English movie Mother Teresa in 1997 by portraying a supporting character. Her first appearance in Sri Lankan cinema.[2] was as the lead in the Sinhalese movie Ira Madiyama (2003) for which she won Best Performance/Best Actress at several international and national award ceremonies - these included the 2004 International Film Festival of Las Palmas and 2006 SIGNIS Salutation Awards Ceremony.

Personal life

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Nimmi Harasgama was born in Colombo, Sri Lanka to a Sinhalese father and Tamil mother.[3] She has two siblings from her father's first marriage: the artist Nelun Harasgama and Prithi Harasgama. When she was five her family moved to the UK where she attended the Westwood House School for Girls a Church of England school.[3] Nimmi attended Goldsmiths, University of London where she received a B.A. (HONS) in Drama and Theatre Arts. In 2001 she received a scholarship to an Acting in Film Workshop at the New York Film Academy.[4][5]

Career

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After appearing in a supportive role in the English movie Mother Teresa: In the Name of God's Poor in 1997, Nimmi made her first step into Sri Lankan cinema in 2003 playing the lead role in Prasanna Vithanage’s film Ira Madiyama (August Sun) where she played the role of a woman whose husband was missing in action.[6] Her successful performance brought her positive reviews and several accolades, including the Best Actress award at the 2004 International Film Festival in Spain.[7][5] Following Ira Madiyama, she appeared in another film about the life of Mother Teresa: Mother Teresa of Calcutta (2003) which was filmed in Sri Lanka and Italy.[6]

In 2012 she appeared in her first Tamil speaking role in Enakkum oru per (I Too Have a Name), a short film written and directed by Suba Sivakumaran, which was nominated for the Golden Bear for Best Short at the Berlin International Film Festival in Germany.[5] In 2011 she partnered with ETV, a Sri Lankan television station, to star in the chat show Put a Chat With Auntie Netta based on a character she created.

In 2020 she played the female lead in Deepa Mehta's film Funny Boy based on Shyam Selvadurai's book of the same name. Her performance garnered rave reviews: "Accomplished British-Sri Lankan actress Nimmi Harasgama (also seen in August Sun and the short I Too Have a Name) stands out as the bold, married Nalini..."[8]

In 2023, she collaborated with Bafta-winning Welsh director Philip John to co-write the cross-cultural romantic comedy film "Chennai Story." The movie, which is directed by Philip John, features Indian superstar Shruti Haasan and rising star Viveik Kalra in leading roles.[9]

Filmography

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Year Film Role Language Notes
1997 Mother Teresa: In the Name of God's Poor Christina English
2003 Ira Madiyama Chamari Sinhala and Tamil
2003 Mother Teresa of Calcutta (film) Sister Celes English Television film
2007 Nisala Gira Nanditha Sinhala Full Length Feature
2008 Flowers of the Sky Priya Gunaratne Sinhala Full Length Feature
2009 Shafted Sharma English Short film
2012 Enakkum oru per Sister Tamil Short film
2009 The Great Rudapest Motel Madame English Short film
2020 Hello Darlin’ Aanya English Full Length Feature
2020 Funny Boy Amma / Nalini English, Tamil, and Sinhala Full Length Feature
2024 Chennai Story English Also, Co-wrote the story with the director Philip John

Television

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Year TV Series Episode Role Language Notes
2005 Doctors Leap in the Dark Mira Chopra English
2008 Doctors Naughty or Nice Dr. Shareen Patel English
2011 Doctors Sticky and Sweet Linda Sahota English
2011 Doctors Anything You Say Linda Sahota English
2017 The Good Karma Hospital Series 1 (6 Episodes) Mari Rodriguez English ITV (UK), ACORN TV / AMAZON PRIME (USA)
2018 The Good Karma Hospital Series 2 (6 Episodes) Mari Rodriguez English ITV (UK), ACORN TV / AMAZON PRIME (USA)
2018 Requiem Series 1 Episode 1 Detective Inspector Alice Benton English Netflix
2020 The Good Karma Hospital Series 3 (6 Episodes) Mari Rodriguez English ITV (UK), ACORN TV / AMAZON PRIME (USA)

References

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  1. ^ Alahakoon, Ajith (30 July 2005). "Presidential Film Awards Festival 2004". The Island (Sri Lanka). Retrieved 21 January 2017.
  2. ^ "Nimmi Harasgma". National Film Corporation Of Sri Lanka. Retrieved 21 January 2017.
  3. ^ a b Amarasingham, Kumudu (24 April 2005). "Between the lines". The Sunday Leader. Retrieved 21 January 2017.
  4. ^ "Cast:Nimmi Harashama". akasakusum.com. Retrieved 21 January 2017.
  5. ^ a b c Jayawardhane, Ruwini (7 December 2015). "Nimmi's numerous moments!". Daily News (Sri Lanka). Retrieved 21 January 2017.
  6. ^ a b "Passionate about art". The Sunday Times (Sri Lanka). 23 May 2004. Retrieved 21 January 2017.
  7. ^ "Nimmi Creates 'Auntie Netta'on ETV". The Sunday Times (Sri Lanka). 10 April 2011. Retrieved 21 January 2017.
  8. ^ Shedde, Meenakshi. "Such a long journey". India Today. Retrieved 2020-12-20.
  9. ^ Ramachandran, Naman (2024-01-24). "Shruti Haasan to Headline BFI-Backed Indo-U.K. Co-Production 'Chennai Story' (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Retrieved 2024-02-23.
  10. ^ "'Ira Madiyama' wins fifth award". The Sunday Times (Sri Lanka). 18 July 2004. Retrieved 21 January 2017.
  11. ^ "Signis salutation for cinema and small screen". The Sunday Times (Sri Lanka). 26 August 2007. Retrieved 21 January 2017.
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