# Plabita Borthakur
**Plabita Borthakur** is an Indian actress and singer from Assam, known for her role as Rehana Abidi in the Hindi film *Lipstick Under My Burkha* (2016) and for work across Hindi films and streaming series. She made her screen debut in [Rajkumar Hirani](https://www.edgepedia.org/rajkumar-hirani)'s *PK* (2014) and has since appeared in films such as *Ahaan*, *Waah Zindagi*, and *#Homecoming*, and in web series including *[Breathe](https://www.edgepedia.org/breathe-tv-series): Into the Shadows*, *[Bombay Begums](https://www.edgepedia.org/bombay-begums)*, and *Escaype Live*.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm7903965/) She also performs and records with the band Manu and Chow.[2](https://music.apple.com/us/artist/plabita-borthakur/928420127)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born | Assam, India; birthplace given as Duliajan, Assam; published birth dates differ (1991, 1992, or 1989)[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm7903965/) • [3](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/plabita_borthakur) |
| Professions | Actor, singer, songwriter, composer; performs with the band Manu and Chow[4](https://plabitaborthakur.com/) |
| Film debut | *PK* (2014), in a small role as Jaggu's sister[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm7903965/) |
| Breakthrough | Rehana Abidi in *Lipstick Under My Burkha* (2016; theatrical release 21 July 2017)[5](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt4807830/fullcredits/) • [6](https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/hindi/lipstick-under-my-burkha-meet-rehana/amp_videoshow/59642766.cms) |
| Assamese debut | *Protishruti* (2024)[7](https://www.indulgexpress.com/entertainment/celebs/2025/May/25/actor-plabita-borthakur-speaks-about-her-versatile-projects-making-her-assamese-debut-and-how-cinema-and-culture-are-interconnected) |
| Family | Elder sisters Parineeta Borthakur, an actor, and Priyangi Borthakur, an assistant director[8](https://www.hindustantimes.com/bollywood/plabita-borthakur-priyangi-and-parineeta-helped-me-settle-down-in-mumbai-and-guided-my-acting-career/story-wd2i9elYE2Y8fTZdKPlAgP.html) |
## Early life and background
Borthakur was born in Assam, and her birthplace is given as the oil town of Duliajan in the [Dibrugarh](https://www.edgepedia.org/dibrugarh) area.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm7903965/) • [3](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/plabita_borthakur) Her father, Probeen (also spelled Probin) Borthakur, worked with Oil India Limited and was an Indian classical singer and teacher; her mother, Rina Borthakur, is a writer and poet who recited poems in Assamese.[9](https://nenow.in/opinion/advent-of-new-age-ott-platform-and-the-paradigm-shift-in-media-a-candid-conversation-with-actor-singer-plabita-borthakur.html) • [10](https://thenortheasttoday.com/assam-meet-plabita-manu-borthakur-an-upcoming-bollywood-actress-from-duliajan/?ap=e-h) She has described a household where singing and dancing were constant, and she took part in theater, dancing, and singing at school.[11](https://www.rediff.com/movies/report/metoo-happens-more-to-women-who-are-outgoing/20210325.htm)
She moved to Mumbai in 2009 for her higher studies, joining Jaihind College, and stayed on to act.[4](https://plabitaborthakur.com/) • [11](https://www.rediff.com/movies/report/metoo-happens-more-to-women-who-are-outgoing/20210325.htm) Two elder sisters were already working in the industry: Parineeta Borthakur, a known face in television and in Hindi and Assamese films, and Priyangi Borthakur, an assistant director on [Sriram Raghavan](https://www.edgepedia.org/sriram-raghavan)'s *[Badlapur](https://www.edgepedia.org/badlapur-film)* (2015) who later became an entrepreneur. Plabita has credited them with helping her settle in Mumbai, sharing coordinator contacts, and guiding her choices of scripts and advertisements.[8](https://www.hindustantimes.com/bollywood/plabita-borthakur-priyangi-and-parineeta-helped-me-settle-down-in-mumbai-and-guided-my-acting-career/story-wd2i9elYE2Y8fTZdKPlAgP.html) • [11](https://www.rediff.com/movies/report/metoo-happens-more-to-women-who-are-outgoing/20210325.htm)
Published birth dates differ across sources: IMDb gives 17 June 1991,[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm7903965/) while one profile gives June 17, 1992[12](https://www.manoramaonline.com/web-stories/movies/2025/09/26/actress-plabita-borthakur-gorgeous-picturess.html) and another gives 17 June 1989.[13](https://www.gethucinema.com/wiki/plabita-borthakur)
## Career
**Debut and early work.** Borthakur began her career in advertising films and concerts, and made her cinematic debut in *PK* (2014), in a small role as the sister of [Anushka Sharma](https://www.edgepedia.org/anushka-sharma)'s character Jaggu.[14](https://www.ibtimes.co.in/controversy-helped-lipstick-under-my-burkha-have-bigger-reach-plabita-borthakur-736183) She has said she took the part simply because it was a Raju Hirani film, and was surprised by how many people noticed her in it.[14](https://www.ibtimes.co.in/controversy-helped-lipstick-under-my-burkha-have-bigger-reach-plabita-borthakur-736183)
**Lipstick Under My Burkha.** Her breakthrough came as Rehana Abidi in Alankrita Shrivastava's *Lipstick Under My Burkha*, a [Prakash Jha](https://www.edgepedia.org/prakash-jha) production about four small-town women in Bhopal asserting their desires against social constraint. Rehana is a college student from a conservative Muslim family who wears a burkha outside the home and jeans and Western pop music inside it, idolizes [Miley Cyrus](https://www.edgepedia.org/miley-cyrus), and hides a streak of shoplifting.[15](https://www.ndtv.com/entertainment/lipstick-under-my-burkha-movie-review-secret-lives-of-small-town-women-make-a-bold-colourful-drama-1727479) • [16](https://zubaanbooks.com/lipstick-under-my-burkha/) Borthakur was cast after a chain of auditions and workshops; the assistant director's roommate had seen her music video and suggested her, and the team was looking for an aspiring musician for the role.[11](https://www.rediff.com/movies/report/metoo-happens-more-to-women-who-are-outgoing/20210325.htm) Her preparation included workshops with Atul Mongia, Hindi books to improve pronunciation, and practical exercises such as using public transport in a burkha and learning to sew with a tailor.[14](https://www.ibtimes.co.in/controversy-helped-lipstick-under-my-burkha-have-bigger-reach-plabita-borthakur-736183)
The film was initially denied certification by the [Central Board of Film Certification](https://www.edgepedia.org/central-board-of-film-certification); after a long controversy, the Film Certification Appellate Tribunal directed the board to grant an 'A' certificate, and the film released in theaters on 21 July 2017.[17](https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bhopal/lipstick-tales-under-a-burkha/articleshow/58379830.cms) • [6](https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/hindi/lipstick-under-my-burkha-meet-rehana/amp_videoshow/59642766.cms) Borthakur said the controversy, and [Ekta Kapoor](https://www.edgepedia.org/ekta-kapoor)'s involvement in releasing the film, gave it a bigger reach, and that the film transformed her career: it was her first serious project, and afterwards filmmakers noticed her and better offers followed.[14](https://www.ibtimes.co.in/controversy-helped-lipstick-under-my-burkha-have-bigger-reach-plabita-borthakur-736183) • [18](https://www.nationalheraldindia.com/amp/story/entertainment/plabita-borthakur-waiting-for-lipstick-under-my-burkha-to-release-was-tough) Reviewers singled her out; the *Telegraph* counted her among 2017's breakthrough performers, noting that as Rehana she "echoed sentiments of a large chunk of the youth today".[19](https://www.telegraphindia.com/entertainment/silver-linings-spotlight/cid/1424439) On Rotten Tomatoes the film holds her highest rating, 93 percent.[3](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/plabita_borthakur)
**Streaming work.** From 2018 onward Borthakur worked largely on streaming platforms. In *Bombay Begums*, her character's experience of workplace sexual harassment by a senior she had admired was a storyline she discussed publicly, saying she judged the treatment as more real than a dramatic one.[11](https://www.rediff.com/movies/report/metoo-happens-more-to-women-who-are-outgoing/20210325.htm) She has said the platform is not the deciding factor for her; script, character, and makers are.[20](https://www.hindustantimes.com/entertainment/web-series/plabita-borthakur-there-s-no-longer-a-race-to-become-a-big-screen-actor-101612272403517.html)
**Films after Lipstick.** In the multilingual film *#Homecoming* (2022), set around a Kolkata youth theater group's reunion, she played Nargis, a slam poet; a review in OTTplay highlighted her performance.[21](https://www.ottplay.com/review/homecoming-review-plabita-borthakur-shines-in-this-sony-liv-film/644313fbe628/1000) • [22](https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/bengali/movies/news/busy-lanes-yellow-taxis-shopping-streetslove-everything-about-kolkata-says-plabita-borthakur/articleshow/80424391.cms) She made her Assamese film debut with *Protishruti* (2024), and described the Assamese industry as very different from Mumbai's, with less money and less hierarchy among the crew.[7](https://www.indulgexpress.com/entertainment/celebs/2025/May/25/actor-plabita-borthakur-speaks-about-her-versatile-projects-making-her-assamese-debut-and-how-cinema-and-culture-are-interconnected) In 2025 she played Amrita in the streaming series *Pyaar Testing*, about a Jaipur woman navigating arranged-marriage expectations.[7](https://www.indulgexpress.com/entertainment/celebs/2025/May/25/actor-plabita-borthakur-speaks-about-her-versatile-projects-making-her-assamese-debut-and-how-cinema-and-culture-are-interconnected) She is also cast as Tara in Abhinay Deo's *Doosra*, a film blending documentary and fiction around [Sourav Ganguly](https://www.edgepedia.org/sourav-ganguly)'s 2002 Lord's shirt-waving celebration.[23](https://www.rediff.com/movies/report/everyone-used-to-call-me-mamata-banerjee/20261021.htm)
## Music
Borthakur is a singer, songwriter, and composer who performs with the band Manu and Chow, which she launched herself.[4](https://plabitaborthakur.com/) • [9](https://nenow.in/opinion/advent-of-new-age-ott-platform-and-the-paradigm-shift-in-media-a-candid-conversation-with-actor-singer-plabita-borthakur.html) On Apple Music her releases include the singles "Baatein" and "P" with Pranab Buragohain (2015), the single "Aphrodisiac" with Synthetic Dymension (2022), and songs from the *Homecoming* soundtrack (2022), including "Rasta Night" and "Jugnu Hote Hain".[2](https://music.apple.com/us/artist/plabita-borthakur/928420127) She has said that when *Lipstick Under My Burkha* was stuck without a release, she turned to composing music at home before acting work resumed.[11](https://www.rediff.com/movies/report/metoo-happens-more-to-women-who-are-outgoing/20210325.htm) She sings Assamese songs with the band and has spoken about missing the [Husori](https://www.edgepedia.org/husori) door-to-door singing tradition of Rongali Bihu in her childhood Duliajan.[24](https://www.rediff.com/getahead/report/kabhi-khushi-kabhi-plabita/20230818.htm) • [25](https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/events/i-really-miss-the-husori-performances-during-bihu-back-home-plabita/articleshow/120281182.cms)
## References
1. [Plabita Borthakur, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm7903965/)
2. [Plabita Borthakur, Apple Music](https://music.apple.com/us/artist/plabita-borthakur/928420127)
3. [Plabita Borthakur Movies & TV Shows List, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/plabita_borthakur)
4. [Plabita Borthakur, official site](https://plabitaborthakur.com/)
5. [Lipstick Under My Burkha (2016) full cast & crew, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt4807830/fullcredits/)
6. [Lipstick Under My Burkha: Meet Rehana, Times of India](https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/hindi/lipstick-under-my-burkha-meet-rehana/amp_videoshow/59642766.cms)
7. [Actor Plabita Borthakur speaks about her versatile projects, Indulge Express, 25 May 2025](https://www.indulgexpress.com/entertainment/celebs/2025/May/25/actor-plabita-borthakur-speaks-about-her-versatile-projects-making-her-assamese-debut-and-how-cinema-and-culture-are-interconnected)
8. [Plabita Borthakur: Priyangi and Parineeta helped me settle down in Mumbai, Hindustan Times, 17 August 2018](https://www.hindustantimes.com/bollywood/plabita-borthakur-priyangi-and-parineeta-helped-me-settle-down-in-mumbai-and-guided-my-acting-career/story-wd2i9elYE2Y8fTZdKPlAgP.html)
9. [Advent of new age OTT platform and the paradigm shift in media, North East Now](https://nenow.in/opinion/advent-of-new-age-ott-platform-and-the-paradigm-shift-in-media-a-candid-conversation-with-actor-singer-plabita-borthakur.html)
10. [Meet Plabita Manu Borthakur, an upcoming Bollywood actress from Duliajan, The North East Today](https://thenortheasttoday.com/assam-meet-plabita-manu-borthakur-an-upcoming-bollywood-actress-from-duliajan/?ap=e-h)
11. [Plabita Borthakur on Bombay Begums, Rediff.com, 25 March 2021](https://www.rediff.com/movies/report/metoo-happens-more-to-women-who-are-outgoing/20210325.htm)
12. [Plabita Borthakur web story, Manorama Online, 26 September 2025](https://www.manoramaonline.com/web-stories/movies/2025/09/26/actress-plabita-borthakur-gorgeous-picturess.html)
13. [Plabita Borthakur Wiki, Gethu Cinema](https://www.gethucinema.com/wiki/plabita-borthakur)
14. [Controversy helped Lipstick Under My Burkha to have bigger reach: Plabita Borthakur, IBTimes India, 27 July 2017](https://www.ibtimes.co.in/controversy-helped-lipstick-under-my-burkha-have-bigger-reach-plabita-borthakur-736183)
15. [Lipstick Under My Burkha Movie Review, NDTV, 21 July 2017](https://www.ndtv.com/entertainment/lipstick-under-my-burkha-movie-review-secret-lives-of-small-town-women-make-a-bold-colourful-drama-1727479)
16. [Lipstick Under My Burkha Review: Marking the Political Terrain of Desire, Zubaan](https://zubaanbooks.com/lipstick-under-my-burkha/)
17. [Lipstick Tales Under a Burkha, Times of India, Bhopal](https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bhopal/lipstick-tales-under-a-burkha/articleshow/58379830.cms)
18. [Plabita Borthakur: Waiting for 'Lipstick Under My Burkha' to release was tough, National Herald, 5 May 2019](https://www.nationalheraldindia.com/amp/story/entertainment/plabita-borthakur-waiting-for-lipstick-under-my-burkha-to-release-was-tough)
19. [Silver linings spotlight, The Telegraph India, 30 December 2017](https://www.telegraphindia.com/entertainment/silver-linings-spotlight/cid/1424439)
20. [Plabita Borthakur: There's no longer a race to become a big screen actor, Hindustan Times, 2 February 2021](https://www.hindustantimes.com/entertainment/web-series/plabita-borthakur-there-s-no-longer-a-race-to-become-a-big-screen-actor-101612272403517.html)
21. [#Homecoming review: Plabita Borthakur shines in this Sony LIV film, OTTplay, 18 February 2022](https://www.ottplay.com/review/homecoming-review-plabita-borthakur-shines-in-this-sony-liv-film/644313fbe628/1000)
22. [Love everything about Kolkata: Plabita Borthakur, Times of India, 23 January 2021](https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/bengali/movies/news/busy-lanes-yellow-taxis-shopping-streetslove-everything-about-kolkata-says-plabita-borthakur/articleshow/80424391.cms)
23. ['Everyone Used To Call Me Mamata Banerjee!', Rediff.com, 21 October 2026](https://www.rediff.com/movies/report/everyone-used-to-call-me-mamata-banerjee/20261021.htm)
24. [Kabhi Khushi, Kabhi Plabita, Rediff Get Ahead, 18 August 2023](https://www.rediff.com/getahead/report/kabhi-khushi-kabhi-plabita/20230818.htm)
25. [I really miss the Husori performances during Bihu back home: Plabita, Times of India, 15 April 2025](https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/events/i-really-miss-the-husori-performances-during-bihu-back-home-plabita/articleshow/120281182.cms)
---
*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Films and standalone screen works › Film people and crafts › Film actors and performers › Indian and South Asian film actors by industry and language › Hindi film actors, 2010s onward › Surnames symbols to G*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 17, 2026; Sep 20, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 20, 2026; Oct 11, 2026; Oct 12, 2026; Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license