Niyar Saikia (Assamese: নিয়ৰ শইকিয়া; born 9 November 1999) is an Indian actress. She played Lakshmi in Jeffrey D. Brown's film Sold.[1]

Niyar Saikia
Born
Niyar Saikia

(1999-11-09) 9 November 1999 (age 24)
Occupation(s)Actress, Dancer
Years active2005–present
Parent(s)Probin Saikia, Roshmi Rekha Saikia

Early life

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Saikia was born in Guwahati, Assam, as the daughter of musicians Probin Saikia and Roshmi Rekha Saikia. She is a student of folk dances and songs of Assam at the Panchasur Institute and at the Seagull theatre. Saikia is training under Padmashree Awardee and Nrityacharya, Shri Jatin Goswami for Sattriya.[2]

Career

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Saikia started acting at age 5. Her first (unreleased) film was Butterfly Chase, directed by Jahnu Baruah. Niyar started performing in theatre and soaps and received a Best Actress award in the All India Multi-Lingual Children Play ad Dance competition-Cuttack (Orissa), portraying a girl named Dhunumoina. Saikia acted in Assamese and Hindi films before she was cast in Sold in 2014. The film is directed by Oscar-winning director Jeffrey D. Brown and based on Patricia McCormick's novel Sold. She was selected for the role after casting director Tess Joseph auditioned more than a thousand girls in Nepal and India. Saikia played the role of a trafficked Nepalese child, Lakshmi, who is sold off to a brothel in Kolkata.[3]

Filmography

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  • Sold, as Lakshmi
  • Aai Kot Nai
  • Main Ganga
  • Butterfly Chase
  • Ami Axomiya
  • Joymoti

References

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  1. ^ "Assamese teenager Niyar Saikia acts in Hollywood movie - Sold". OK North East. Retrieved 4 January 2015.
  2. ^ Lagachu, Migang David (1 December 2014). "Exclusive interview of Niyar Saikia who made her debut in Hollywood film Sold". Creativica.in. Retrieved 4 January 2015.
  3. ^ Gani, Abdul (28 July 2014). "Assam girl Niyar Saikia elated after acclaimed role in 'Sold'". The Times of India. Retrieved 4 January 2015.
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