Tonthoingambi Leishangthem, popularly known as Tonthoi, is an Indian actress. She has established a career in

Manipuri films The Cinema of Manipur is the film industry based in Manipur, India. It includes not only Meitei language movies but all the films made in different languages of the different communities in Manipur. The Manipuri film industry was born when ' ...

and is the recipient of several awards, including a

National Film Award The National Film Awards is the most prominent film award ceremony in India. Established in 1954, it has been administered, along with the International Film Festival of India and the Indian Panorama, by the Indian government's Directorate ...

Early life and education

She is a B. Com graduate and has taken keen interest in performing arts since very young age. Tonthoi loves sports and has actively been volunteering in social service since her childhood. She completed her master's in social work from

Manipur University Manipur University ( mni, Manipur Taibang Maheikol) is a central university located in Imphal, Manipur, India. It was established on 5 June 1980, under the ''Manipur University Act, 1980'' (Manipur Act 8 of 1980), as a teaching cum-affiliating ...

. As a student, she was part of the University's women football team which participated in All India Women Football tournament. She has also been trained in playing the traditional music instrument, Pena. Before joining NSD, she took a three-month acting class in the early month of 2007 under Oja Niladhaja Khuman. She has also completed her one-year residential certificate course in Theatre in Education from National School of Drama, Tripura.

Career

''Leishangthem'' appeared in feature films,

Doordarshan Doordarshan (abbreviated as DD; Hindi: , ) is an Indian public service broadcaster founded by the Government of India, owned by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting and one of Prasar Bharati's two divisions. One of India's largest bro ...

serials and ISTV serials. She has also been trained in playing the traditional music instrument Pena. She took a three-month acting class in the early month of 2007 under Oja Niladhaja Khuman. Her first film is ''Nangna Thawaini'', where she was playing heroine's friend, alongside

Kamala Kamala refers to: People * Kamala (name), given name and surname, includes list of people and characters with the name ** Kamala Harris, the 49th and current Vice President of the United States * Kamala (wrestler) (1950–2020), American profess ...

and Gung in a supporting role. After this, she has done a number of Manipuri films. Among the notable ones are ''Loibataare Ta Raju'', '' Thoicha'', ''Amamba Sayon (Resurrection)'', ''Eepaktuda the lake'', ''

Leipaklei ''Leipaklei'' () is a 2012 Indian Meitei language film directed and produced by Aribam Syam Sharma. It stars Leishangthem Tonthoi in the titular role. The story of the film was written by Arambam Samarendra and screenplay by Arambam Ongbi Mem ...

'', ''Nungshibee Kabaw Valley'', ''

Beragee Bomb ''Beragee Bomb'' is a 2013 comedy Manipuri film directed by O. Gautam and written by Laishram Santosh. It stars Gurumayum Bonny, Leishangthem Tonthoi, Loya, Suraj Sharma Laimayum and Edwin Soibam. The movie was released on 31 August 2013 at MF ...

'', '' Pallepfam'' and '' Phijigee Mani''. She has also produced a Manipuri film titled ''

'' under the banner of Chingkhurakpa Arts along with her brother. Her Manipuri film '' Pallepfam'' and her

Assamese film Assamese cinema, also known as Jollywood, is an Indian film industry of Assamese-language motion pictures. It is based in Assam, India. The industry was born in 1935 when Jyoti Prasad Agarwala released his movie '' Joymoti''. Since then the As ...

''Borxharanya'' got entries at the 10th edition of Habitat Film Festival. She also acted in an Assamese film ''Ishu'' which went on to won the National Award for Best Feature Film in Assamese 2017. Her 2019 film ''

Eigi Kona ''Eigi Kona'' ( English: ''Stallone, My Pony'') is a 2019 Indian Meitei language Meitei (), also known as Manipuri (, ), is a Tibeto-Burman language of north-eastern India. It is spoken by around 1.8 million people, predominantly in th ...

'' won the National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Manipuri at the

67th National Film Awards The 67th National Film Awards were announced at a press meet on 22 March 2021 to honour the best Indian films certified in India between 1 January and 31 December 2019. The awards ceremony, at which the Directorate of Film Festivals presents it ...

. She played a supporting role in the film.

Accolades

She has won a number of awards, including a

. She received the Best Supporting Actress award at the

59th National Film Awards The 59th National Film Awards, presented by the Directorate of Film Festivals, honoured the best of Indian cinema for 2011 and took place on 3 May 2012 at Vigyan Bhavan, New Delhi. Awards were presented in 38 categories in the Feature Films se ...

2011 for the film '' Phijigee Mani'', where she played the role of Yaiphabee in the film. The citation for the award reads, "''For the dignity and power with which L. T. Devi informs the character Yaipabhee in this tightly controlled Manipuri story.''" Her portrayal of ''Nungshitombi'' in the movie '' Nangna Kappa Pakchade'' earned her the Best Actor in a Leading Role - Female award at the 9th Manipur State Film Awards 2014. As of 2016, she bagged the Best Actor North-East Female at the Prag Cine Awards North-East 2016 for her performance in

Oken Amakcham Oken Amakcham is an Indian film director, music director and actor who works in Manipuri films. He started his career in theatre and performing arts. He is a recipient of the National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Manipuri for the movie ' ...

Manipur film The Cinema of Manipur is the film industry based in Manipur, India. It includes not only Meitei language movies but all the films made in different languages of the different communities in Manipur. The Manipuri film industry was born when ' ...

''Patkee Tharo''. She also won the Best Actress Award at the Prag Cine Awards - North East 2018 for her performance in the film '' Iche Tampha''. She won the Special Jury Award for her film '' Iche Tampha'' at the 11th Manipuri State Film Awards 2018. In 2021, she won the ''Grand Jury Award for Best Actor'' at the

Chalachitram National Film Festival Chalachitram National Film Festival (CNFF) is a festival conducted in Guwahati, Assam. The festival director is Utpal Datta, a National Film Award winning film critic and film maker. Society and purpose The festival is organised by Chalachitra ...

2021 for her performance in the non-feature ''Panthougi Liklam''. She won the Best Actor (Female) for her film ''

Eewai ''Eewai'' (''English'': The Ripple) is a 2022 non-feature Indian Meitei language film directed by Khwairakpam Bishwamittra. It is produced by Samir Thingbaijam under the banner of Nongdol Mamikol. The film stars Leishangthem Tonthoi in the le ...

'' at the Global Independent Film Festival of India, 2022 held on 30th November, 2022 at Rabindra Okakura Bhawan, Salt Lake, Kolkata, India and at Goa International Film Competition-GIFC.

Off-screen work

''Tonthoi'' was the brand ambassador of ''Singju Festival'', which is held every year between January and February, starting from the year 2017. ''Singju'' is a typical Manipur salad-type dish. The festival is held at different places, including MMRC and Unity Park, Khangabok and Lamdeng Makha Leikai Lampak.

Selected filmography

* Feature Films * Non-Feature Films

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Devi, Leishangthem Tonthoingambi Indian television actresses Best Supporting Actress National Film Award winners 21st-century Indian actresses Living people Meitei people Indian film actresses Actresses from Manipur Actresses in Meitei cinema Sportswomen from Manipur 1986 births Footballers from Manipur Association footballers not categorized by position Association football players not categorized by nationality