Malini Fonseka
Hon. Malini Fonseka | |
|---|---|
Fonseka in 1976 | |
| Member of Parliament for National List | |
| In office 22 April 2010 – 26 June 2015 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Wanniarachchige Malini Senehelatha Fonseka 30 April 1947 Peliyagoda, Kelaniya, British Ceylon |
| Died | 24 May 2025 (aged 78) Colombo, Sri Lanka |
| Nationality | Sri Lankan |
| Political party | United People's Freedom Alliance |
| Spouses |
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| Parents |
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| Relatives | Damayanthi Fonseka (sister) Prasanna Vithanage (brother-in-law) Samanalee Fonseka (niece) Senali Fonseka (niece) |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Awards | Sarasaviya Best Actress Award Sarasaviya Most Popular Actress Award |
Wanniarachchige Malini Senehelatha Fonseka, (Sinhala: මාලිනී ෆොන්සේකා; Tamil: மாலினி பொன்சேகா; 30 April 1947 – 24 May 2025) was a Sri Lankan actress, theatre artist, director and politician. Often dubbed the "Queen of Sri Lankan Cinema", her career spanned seven decades. Fonseka made her debut in Sri Lankan cinema with Tissa Liyansooriya's Punchi Baba in 1968, and later she was named by CNN as one of Asia's 25 greatest film actors of all time in 2010.
Fonseka first became widely known when she won the Best Actress Award at the 1969 National State Drama Festival, followed by a Sarasaviya Best Actress Awards for Hingana Kolla in 1980, Aradhana in 1982 and Yasa Isuru in 1983. She also broke records by winning the Slim Nielsen Peoples' Award for the Most Popular Actress twelve times in a row.