Lekha Washington is an Indian actress, product designer, sculptor, and lyricist. She predominantly works in Tamil and Telugu films. She is well known for her installations and unique furniture designs.
Wiki/Biography
Lekha Washington was born on Monday, 30 April 1984 (age 40 years; as of 2024) in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. Her zodiac sign is Taurus.
A childhood photograph of Lekha Washington
She did her schooling in Good Shepherd Convent, Chennai. She received a degree in Fine Arts from Stella Maris College, Chennai. She pursued a master’s degree in Lifestyle Product Design at the National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad. Later, she pursued another master’s degree in Film and Video Communication at the same institution. She grew up in Chennai, however, she later moved to Mumbai to pursue a career as an actor and sculptor.
Physical Appearance
Height (approx.): 5′ 7″
Hair Colour: Dark Brown
Eye Colour: Brown
Family
Parents & Siblings
His father’s name is Kenneth, he has mixed Burmese, Italian, and Punjabi ancestry.
Lekha Washington’s father
His mother’s name is Geeta, and she is Maharashtrian.
Lekha Washington’s mother
Husband
She got married to the journalist Pablo Chaterji on 18 November 2017. However, the couple later got separated.
A wedding photograph of Lekha Washington and Pablo Chaterji
Religion/Religious Views
She is an agnostic.
Relationships/Affairs
Pablo Chaterji
She dated Pablo Chaterji for almost eight years before tying the knot with him in 2017.
Imran Khan
Lekha Washington is in a rumoured relationship with the former actor Imran Khan. The couple has been seen together on various occasions. In 2023, they were spotted together at the wedding function of Aamir Khan‘s daughter Ira Khan.
Lekha Washington with Imran Khan at Ira Khan’s wedding
In 2024, Imran, in an interview, confirmed his relationship with Lekha. He mentioned how they grew close during the lockdown, about a year and a half after he separated from Avantika. He further said,
There’s this narrative of Lekha being a homewrecker, which infuriates me, because not only is it misogynistic but it also takes away my agency as an individual.”
Career
Actor
Theatre
In 2002, she worked as an actor in the English stage play ‘Twelfth Night,’ organised by Madras Player’s production in Chennai. She played the character of Viola in the play. She has also worked as a director for a theatre group named Khel.
Film
Tamil
Lekha Washington made her acting debut with the Tamil film ‘Kadhalar Dhinam’ (1999) in which she made a short appearance. In 2007, she appeared as a bride at a wedding in the song “Ilamai Ullasam” in the film ‘Unnale Unnale.’ She received immense appreciation for her performance as Brinda Sekhar in the film ‘Jayam Kondaan’ (2008).
Poster of the film ‘Jayam Kondaan’
In 2010, she played the lead role of Saraswathi aka Saro in the film ‘Va.’ She appeared opposite Prasanna in the film ‘Kalyana Samayal Saadham’ in 2013. She essayed the role of Meera Chandrasekaran in the film.
Lekha Washington in a still from the film ‘Kalyana Samayal Saadham’
In 2014, she played the role of Megha Sharma in the film ‘Arima Nambi.’
Hindi
She made her Bollywood debut in 2004 with the film ‘Yuva’ in which she made a short appearance as a girl at the embassy. In 2013, she played the supporting role of Kamini in the film ‘Matru Ki Bijlee Ka Mandola,’ starring Imran Khan and Anushka Sharma. She essayed the role of Mira in the 2014 film ‘Peter Gaya Kaam Se.’
Poster of the film ‘Peter Gaya Kaam Se’
Telugu
In 2010, she essayed the supporting role of Lasya in the Allu Arjun starrer film ‘Vedam.’ She acted in the film ‘Kamina’ in 2013. She made a guest appearance in the 2015 film ‘Dynamite.’
Poster of the film ‘Dynamite’
Others
In 2007, she played the role of Vini in Chetan Shah’s experimental English film ‘Framed.’ In 2010, she played the lead role of Sonia in the Kannada film ‘Huduga Hudugi,’ starring Dhyan.
Lekha Washington in a still from the film ‘Huduga Hudugi’
Filmmaker
While studying filmmaking at the National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad, she worked as a director for the short films ‘Spoonerism,’ ‘Catch 22,’ and ‘Sunn.’
Lyricist
Apart from acting, she has also tried her hand at writing. In 2017, she wrote the lyrics of the songs “Be Still” and “Shimmy Shake” for the Bollywood film ‘Rangoon.’
Poster of the film ‘Rangoon’
Sculptor
Exhibitions
Lekha Washington held her first art exhibition titled ‘Exhibition A’ when she was only 18 years old at the Lalit Kala Akademi, Chennai in 2002. Some of her works in the exhibition are titled ‘Clawse,’ ‘Conception,’ and ‘Whoosh.’ Her artwork ‘Clawse’ is inspired by the best-selling book ‘Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone,’ while her artwork ‘Conception’ originated from an attempt to fry eggs. In her installation ‘Whoosh,’ Lekha has tried to depict the water problems in Chennai at that time. The installation describes how even when it rains a lot, people in Chennai often don’t have enough water. She made use of resin, PVC pipes, and enamel paint to create the installation.
‘Whoosh’ installation by Lekha Washington
In 2012, she did her first show at the Palatte Design Studio in Mumbai, where she introduced her Sink Collection (furniture design). She exhibited her installation ‘This Too Shall Pass’ at the Kochi Biennale in 2015. The installation is a model of the moon, made up of 4 large 12-foot helium globes. The model is designed to rotate on its axis, reflecting the changing phases of the lunar cycle.
‘This Shall Too Pass’ installation by Lekha Washington
In 2015, she hosted her first solo show titled ‘The Collective Noun or A Pound of Flesh and Suchlike,’ held at Sakshi Gallery, Arthur Bunder Road, Colaba. In the same year, she conducted an exhibition titled ‘Art at Palladium ‘ at the Phoenix Palladium Mall, Mumbai. In the exhibition, she introduced her artwork ‘Old Love,’ which is a part of her collection ‘That Which Is, Is Not.’ The installation consists of a 15-foot iron ball hovering mid-air with no support and chains around it. The Bollywood actor Rahul Bose also attended her exhibition.
‘Old Love’ by Lekha Washington
Some of her other artwork in the exhibition include ‘The Dot’ installation, ‘The Pink Sink’ with rising moon, and ‘The Drop’ miniatures. She exhibited her installation ‘Moondancer’ at the Burning Man Festival, held in Black Rock Desert, Pershing County, Nevada, US in 2018. The installation is an 11-foot moon model which was made up of a helium balloon having a hand-painted silver and yellow cover. It was hoisted to a height of about 150 feet off the ground. It was the only installation by an Indian artist at the festival.
Lekha Washington with her artwork ‘Moondancer’ (in the background) at Burning Man Festival 2018
In 2022, Lekha Washington became the first Indian artist to be invited twice to the Burning Man festival. She displayed a 20-foot fire artwork installation ‘The Apocalypse is Breathtaking’ at the event.
‘The Apocalypse is Breathtaking’ by Lekha Washington
Notable Artworks
Lekha Washington’s artwork ‘Soup’ (2013), is an installation made by carving fibre-class. It looks like a swirling mass of liquid, having a cluster of tiny heads and little abstract human figurines on the droplets. It can be described as a primordial pool of humanity flowing into itself.
Soup by Lekha Washington
In 2018, she collaborated with luxury vodka brand ‘Belvedere’ to create her artwork ‘Drop of Universe.’
‘Drop of Universe’ by Lekha Washington
She has created her installation ‘Breathing Room’ in collaboration with Debanshu Bhoumik. It is a multi-media artwork made using fabric and advanced technology and new computer programs to create a special experience for interactors. The use of sonar sensors by the artists in the artwork detects the micro-movements in the interactors’ bodies and transforms them into light. Interactors can feel how amazing their bodies are translated all around themselves without doing anything special.
‘Breathing Room’ by Lekha Washington
Some of her other notable artworks are titled ‘This Too Shall Pass,’ ‘Dervish of Tornadoes,’ ‘Lightström,’ ‘Lightroom,’ ‘Up,’ ‘The Calling,’ ‘Like a River,’ and ‘The Apocalypse is Breath-taking.’
Product Designer
In 2011, Washington founded a studio named ‘Ajji- The Odd Product Company.’ It is a product design company, where she creates innovative furniture designs. She purchased a 150-year-old ancestral house in Ranwar village, Bandra, to transform it into her studio. She has patented the design of her work ‘The Pink Sink.’ It is a two-dimensional almost-circle chair with a stainless steel frame.
The Pink Sink by Lekha Washington
Her most notable furniture design from her Sink Collection is ‘The Dot’ (2012). It is a large circle-shaped chair, with a diameter of 60 inches. It has a two-dimensional appearance and can be hung on a wall. The most fascinating thing about the chair is that it sinks in as someone sits on it. She came up with the idea of ‘The Dot,’ while studying at NID.
Lekha Washington on the chair ‘The Dot’
She collaborated with the French designer Jean Francois Lesage for her chair design ‘The Drop’ in 2012. Some other innovative designed products include ‘Kiku Chandelier,’ ‘Raven Light,’ ‘Pocket Square,’ ‘Square Sink,’ ‘Kiku Mini,’ ‘Squair Chair,’ ‘Moon Dot,’ and ‘Bent Light.’
Squair Chair by Lekha Washington
In 2021, she changed the name of her studio from ‘Ajji- The Odd Product Compan’ to ‘Lekha Washington Studio.’ In 2013, she set up another studio named ‘Upstair Studio.’
Awards
- Femina Women of the Year Award in 2014
- EDIDA Award in 2015
Lekha Washington (second from right) after receiving the EDIDA Award
Facts/Trivia
- In 2007, she worked as an actress in the Tamil film ‘Kettavan.’ However, later the film was cancelled due to creative differences between the lead actor and director of the film.
- She has also signed for Rajkumar Santoshi‘s Hindi film ‘Power,’ which was later delayed.
- Lakha Washington was selected to host an analysis and interview show to provide coverage of the cricket matches during the first season of the Indian Premier League in 2008. She did thorough research about cricket by reading journals and also took the help of former cricketer Ajay Jadeja to make her reporting better.
- She has worked as an interior designer for Riyaaz Amlani’s restaurant Social in Bengaluru.
- She has also worked as an anchor for a talk show on SS Music.
- She is the patent holder for two innovative products she has designed.
- In an interview, she revealed that when she was four or five years old, she designed a game with a wooden block and a hook.
- In May 2014, she participated in the International Contemporary Furniture Fair, held in New York.
- Her furniture piece ‘The Dot’ was incorporated in a cover shoot for the magazine ‘India Today’ in 2013. Her other furniture piece ‘Atoms’ was also incorporated by the magazine in a cover shoot in the year 2016.
Atoms furniture piece designed by Lekha Washington on the cover of India Today
- In 2018, she protested on Twitter against the ‘Red Dot GmbH & Co. KG’ for recognizing Markus Borgens with an award. Borgens had plagiarized her ‘Pink Sink’ designs in 2014, which Lekha originally crafted in 2004-05.
Here’s my pinksink chair, 2 indian patents, designed in 2004-5, copied by Markus Borgens in 2014 (the next picture) who won an award by @reddot who refuses to look at the evidence, because apparently Indian voice is irrelevant. Please tweet @reddot and let them know Its not ok! pic.twitter.com/qSb6t2UgH7
— lekha washington (@washingtonlekha) May 5, 2018
- Lekha Washington was selected in the list of Top 50 for LAGI 2021 Fly Ranch.
- She is a cat lover. She often shares images of her pet cats on her Instagram handle.
Lekha Washington while playing with her cat
Categories: Biography
Source: HIS Education