Leela is a name of

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest in the late ...

origin. Like many Sanskrit words, it cannot be literally translated to English but can be loosely translated as "play" (noun). ''

Lila Lila or LILA may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Lila'' (album), debut album by American country music singer Lila McCann * ''Lila'' (movie), a 1968 sexploitation film * The Meaning of Lila, a comic strip written by John Forgetta and L. A. ...

'' is common to both non-dualistic and dualistic philosophical schools, but has a markedly different significance in each. Within non-dualism, Leela is a way of describing all reality, including the cosmos, as the outcome of creative play by the divine absolute (Brahman). It was also used to mean "Princess of Darkness" in some regions of the world.

Given name

Leela Aheer Leela Sharon Aheer (born September 26, 1970) is a Canadian politician who was elected in the 2015 Alberta election to the Legislative Assembly of Alberta, and re-elected in the 2019 Alberta general election. On June 8, 2022, Aheer announced he ...

(born 1970), Canadian politician *

Leela Bunce Leela Bunce (born 17 December 1980) is director of ShineTime (an organization which promotes stress relieving benefits of laughter) and a regular on the chatshow and radio circuit. She is a Laughter Yoga facilitator and member of the Laughter Ne ...

(born 1980), British media personality *

Leela Chitnis Leela Chitnis (''née'' Nagarkar; 9 September 1909 – 14 July 2003) was an Indian actress in the Indian film industry, active from 1930s to 1980s. In her early years she starred as a romantic lead, but she is best remembered for her later role ...

(1912–2003), Indian actress * Leela Corman, American cartoonist *

Leela Desai Leela Desai, aka Lila Desai, was an Indian actress in the 1930s and 1940s. She was the daughter of Umedram Lalbhai Desai and his second wife Satyabala Devi, a musician of the early 1900s. Desai was born in Newark, New Jersey when her parent ...

(fl. 1937–1961), Indian actress *

Leela Devi Dr. R. Leela Devi (13 February 1932 – 19 May 1998) was an Indian writer, translator, and teacher who wrote in English, Malayalam, and Sanskrit. She was from the state of Kerala. Profession Writer and translator Dr. R. Leela Devi wrote ...

(1932–1998), Indian writer * Leela Devi Dookhun (born 1961), Mauritian cabinet minister * Leela Dube (1923–2012), Indian anthropologist * Leela Gandhi (born 1966), Indian-American academic * Leela Gilday, Dene-Canadian singer * Leela Grace (born 1977), American singer-songwriter * Leela Hamid (born 1984), Maldivian volleyball player * Leela Hazzah, Egyptian conservation biologist *

Leela James Aleicha Janeice Campbell (born May 22, 1973) known professionally as Leela James, is an American R&B and soul singer-songwriter. Music career James made her debut on the soundtrack to the 2000 Jamie Foxx film '' Bait'' on The Roots song "Work ...

(born 1983), American singer-songwriter * Leela Majumdar (1908–2007), Bengali writer *

Leela Damodara Menon Leela Damodara Menon (4 January 1923 – 10 October 1995) was an Indian politician. She was a Member of Parliament, representing Kerala in the Rajya Sabha the upper house of India's Parliament as a member of the Indian National Congress. Bi ...

(born 1923), Indian politician *

Leela Mishra Leela Mishra (1 January 1908 – 17 January 1988) was an Indian actress. She worked as a character actor in over 200 Hindi films for five decades, and is best remembered for playing stock characters such as aunts (''Chachi'' or ''Mausi''). She ...

(1908–1988), Indian actress *

Leela Naidu Leela Naidu (1940 – 28 July 2009) was an Indian actress who starred in a small number of Hindi and English films, including '' Yeh Raste Hain Pyar Ke'' (1963), based on the real-life Nanavati case, and '' The Householder'', Merchant Ivory Pr ...

(1940–2009), Indian actress *

Leela Nambudiripad Leela Nambudiripad (16 May 1934 – 27 April 2021), known by her pen name Sumangala, was an Indian author of children's literature in Malayalam. Some of her notable works included ''Neypaayasam, Mithayippoti,'' as well as translations of the ''Pa ...

(1934–2021), Indian children's author * Leela Omchery (born 1929), Indian singer and writer * Leela Roy (1900–1970), Indian politician *

Leela Samson Leela Samson (born 6 May 1951) is a Bharatanatyam dancer, choreographer, instructor, writer and actress from India. As a soloist, she is known for her technical virtuosity and has taught Bharatanatyam at Shriram Bhartiya Kala Kendra in Delhi f ...

(born 1951), Indian dancer and writer *

Leela Savasta Leela Savasta is a Canadian actress. She played Clair Crosby in the 2006 film '' Black Christmas''. She is best known for her supporting roles in the television shows, ''Battlestar Galactica'' as Tracey Anne, ''Cra$h & Burn'' as Lucia Silva and L ...

, Canadian actress *

Leela Soma Leela Soma is a Scottish-based writer who was born in Madras (former name for Chennai) in India, and now lives in Glasgow. Biography Leela Soma came to Glasgow in 1969 with her husband. She worked, until her retirement, as a teacher of Modern ...

, Indian-Scottish writer * Leela Sumant Moolgaokar (1916–1992), Indian social worker

Surname

Chindodi Leela Chindodi Leela (1943 – 21 January 2010) was an Indian stage and film actress, politician, and writer from Karnataka. Family Leela was born in 1943 at Davangere, Karnataka into a family of professional theater artists. Her father Chindodi Vee ...

(1937–2010), Indian actress and politician *

Kulappulli Leela Kulappulli Leela (born 19 April 1954) is an Indian actress who predominantly appears in Malayalam cinema, Tamil cinema and television. She has mostly done comedic roles, and has appeared in over 350 films. She began her career acting through ...

, Indian actress *

P. Leela Porayathu Leela (19 May 1934 – 31 October 2005) was an Indian playback singer, Carnatic vocalist and a music director. She has recorded more than 5,000 songs in various Indian languages including Malayalam, Telugu, Tamil, Kannada, Hindi, ...

(1934–2005), Indian playback singer

Fictional characters

* Leela, granddaughter of Akela in Rudyard Kipling's ''

The Jungle Book ''The Jungle Book'' (1894) is a collection of stories by the English author Rudyard Kipling. Most of the characters are animals such as Shere Khan the tiger and Baloo the bear, though a principal character is the boy or "man-cub" Mowgli, w ...

'' * Turanga Leela, a protagonist of Futurama * Leela of the Sevateem, a companion of the

Fourth Doctor The Fourth Doctor is an incarnation of the Doctor, the protagonist of the BBC science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. He is portrayed by Tom Baker. Within the series' narrative, the Doctor is a centuries-old alien Time Lord from the ...

in Doctor Who.

Given name

Surname

Fictional characters

See also