Sunita Mani
{{Short description|American actress, dancer and comedian (born 1986)}}
{{blpsources|date=March 2021}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=September 2016}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Sunita Mani
| birth_name =
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1986|12|13}}
| occupation = {{hlist|Actress|dancer|comedian}}
| years_active = 2005–present
| spouse = {{marriage|Kenny Warren|2018}}
| alma_mater = Emerson College
}}
Sunita Mani (born December 13, 1986) is an American actress, dancer and comedian. She is best known for her television roles as Trenton in the USA Network drama Mr. Robot (2015–2017) and Arthie Premkumar in the Netflix comedy GLOW (2017–2019).{{cite web |date=March 21, 2014 |title=Behind the Scenes of the "Turn Down for What" Music Video—An Interview with Sunita Mani |url=http://creamcitymaryland.com/2014/03/21/behind-the-scenes-of-the-turn-down-for-what-music-video-an-interview-with-sunita-mani/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161022125910/https://creamcitymaryland.com/2014/03/21/behind-the-scenes-of-the-turn-down-for-what-music-video-an-interview-with-sunita-mani/ |archive-date=October 22, 2016 |access-date=September 16, 2015 |website=Cream City, MD}} Mani played the lead roles in the 2020 films Save Yourselves! and Evil Eye.
Early life
Mani was born to Usha and Venk Mani,{{cite news |last1=Wagner |first1=Sydney |title=Dr. Venk Mani steps down as Dickson Co. medical examiner after nearly 40 years |url=https://www.tennessean.com/story/news/local/dickson/2020/01/15/dr-mani-retires-dickson-medical-examiner-after-30-years/4425019002/ |access-date=4 May 2023 |work=The Tennessean |date=January 15, 2020}} from Tamil Nadu, India.{{Cite web |last=Jhunjhunwala |first=Udita |title=Sunita Mani interview: 'We're having a moment, there will be more equalised seating at the table' |url=https://scroll.in/reel/975794/suniti-mani-interview-were-having-a-moment-there-will-be-more-equalised-seating-at-the-table |access-date=May 28, 2022 |website=Scroll.in |date=October 18, 2020 |language=en-US}}
She graduated from Dickson County High School in Dickson,{{cite web |last1=Pudzianowski |first1=Lydia |title=Sunita Mani Defies Comfort Zones |url=https://floodmagazine.com/48317/sunita-mani-defies-comfort-zones/ |website=FLOOD Magazine |access-date=4 May 2023 |language=en |date=March 8, 2018}} Tennessee in 2004.{{cite news |last1=Gadd |first1=Chris |title=Sunita Mani of Netflix's 'GLOW': Dickson nurtured her offbeat style |url=https://www.tennessean.com/story/news/local/dickson/2018/06/28/sunita-mani-netflixs-glow-dickson-nurtured-her-offbeat-style/739610002/ |access-date=4 May 2023 |work=The Tennessean |date=June 28, 2018}}
After studying writing at Emerson College, graduating in 2008,[https://today.emerson.edu/2023/12/12/emerson-alums-named-to-forbes-30-under-30/ "Emerson Alums Named to Forbes 30 Under 30"], Emerson Today, December 12, 2023. where she gained experience in stand-up comedy, Mani joined the Upright Citizens Brigade for three years, where she learned more about improv.
Career
She began her acting career by appearing in the MTV web TV pilot Writer's Block, and in a few commercials including ones for Burger King and Levi's.{{cite web |last=Chitnis |first=Deepak |date=June 2, 2014 |title=That girl with the funky dance moves in 'Turn Down for What' is Sunita Mani |url=http://www.americanbazaaronline.com/2014/06/02/girl-funky-dance-moves-turn-sunita-mani/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210228013921/http://www.americanbazaaronline.com/2014/06/02/girl-funky-dance-moves-turn-sunita-mani/ |archive-date=February 28, 2021 |access-date=September 16, 2015 |website=The American Bazaar}} {{cite web|first1=Rachel|last1=Handler|access-date=February 22, 2023|title=Sunita Mani Is Taking Up Space|url=https://www.vulture.com/2020/10/sunita-mani-is-taking-up-space-in-save-yourselves.html|date=1 October 2020|website=Vulture}}{{Cite news |date=March 24, 2023 |title=Sunita Something |newspaper=Tumblr |url=https://sunitasomething.tumblr.com/RESUME}}
Her first film appearance was in The Unspeakable Act (2012), an American coming-of-age drama written and directed by Dan Sallitt which won the Sarasota Film Festival's Independent Visions Award. Mani gained public recognition for her dance performance in the music video for the song "Turn Down for What", released in December 2013. She appeared in the drama–thriller television series Mr. Robot as Trenton.{{cite web|title=Top 20 Countdown: Guest Host Miss Info + Her Baby Get "Butt Popped"|url=https://www.vh1.com/news/tpryxt/top-20-countdown-guest-host-miss-info-sunita-mani-interview|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230331151256/https://www.vh1.com/news/tpryxt/top-20-countdown-guest-host-miss-info-sunita-mani-interview|url-status=live|archive-date=March 31, 2023|website=VH1+Music|access-date=September 16, 2015}} In 2016, she appeared in Don't Think Twice, an episode of Broad City, and episodes of The Good Place. She was cast in the 2017 Netflix series GLOW.{{cite web|url=https://deadline.com/2016/09/g-l-o-w-jenji-kohan-netflix-comedy-series-britt-baron-jackie-tohn-1201824469/|title='G.L.O.W.': Jenji Kohan Netflix Comedy Series Adds Britt Baron, Jackie Tohn & Five More|author=Denise Petski|date=September 22, 2016|publisher=Deadline Hollywood|access-date=September 22, 2016}}
Mani is a member of the alt-comedy group Cocoon Central Dance Team.{{cite web |title=About |url=http://www.cocooncentraldanceteam.com/about-1 |website=Cocoon Central Dance Team}}
Filmography
=Film=
| class="wikitable sortable"
! Year ! Title ! Role ! class="unsortable" | Notes |
| 2012
| {{sortname|The|Unspeakable Act}} | Jessica | |
| 2013
| Sardines out of a Can | Extra | |
| rowspan="2"|2015
| 3rd Street Blackout | Elora | |
| Stinking Heaven
| Sunita | |
| rowspan="2"|2016
| Performance Art Dancer | |
| Don't Think Twice
| Amy | |
| 2018
| Assistant Max | |
| rowspan="3"|2019
| {{sortname|The|Death of Dick Long}} | Lake Travis | |
| Wine Country
| Dolly | |
| Can You Keep a Secret?
| Lissy | |
| rowspan="3"|2020
| Su | |
| The Outside Story
| Slater | |
| Evil Eye
| Pallavi Kharti | |
| rowspan="2"|2022
| Everything Everywhere All at Once | TV Musical - Queen | |
| Spirited
| Ghost of Christmas Past | |
| rowspan="2"|2023
| Dr. Allen | |
| Please Don't Destroy: The Treasure of Foggy Mountain
| Tricia | |
| 2024
| Arundhathi Gavaskar |
| rowspan="2" |2025
| Dr. Bhatia | |
| The Roses
| {{TableTBA}} | Post-production |
=Television=
| class="wikitable sortable"
! Year ! Title ! Role ! class="unsortable" | Notes |
| 2012, 2018
| Various | 3 episodes |
| 2015–2017
| Trenton | 16 episodes |
| rowspan="4"|2016
| Sonum | Episode: "The Day the World Went Away" |
| Broad City
| Coworker | 1 episode |
| The Good Place
| Chad | 2 episodes |
| Search Party
| Pia | 2 episodes |
| 2017–2019
| GLOW | Arthie Premkumar | 29 episodes |
| 2017–2021
| Fatima Khorasani | 27 episodes |
| 2018
| Herself | Episode: "WWE Superstars vs. GLOW & Laila Ali vs. Chris Jericho" |
| 2019
| Rhonda Runner | Episode: "Amazing Alie/Robbie & Rhonda Runner" |
| rowspan="4"|2020
| Homra Simpson | Episode: "Debspringa" |
| At Home with Amy Sedaris
| Denise Hershey Musgrave | Episode: "Signature Dishes" |
| Social Distance
| Dr. Larson | Episode: "Humane Animal Trap" |
| Dream Corp LLC
| Margot Daly | Recurring; 8 episodes |
| 2020–2021
| Neeti/Preeti (voice) | 4 episodes |
| rowspan="4"|2021
| (voice) | Episode: "After the End" |
| Scenes from a Marriage
| Danielle | Episode: "Innocence and Panic" |
| Summer Camp Island
| (voice) | Episode: "Spirit Balls" |
| Ultra City Smiths
| Detective Jaya Mukherjee (voice) | 2 episodes |
| 2022
| Servant | Veera | 4 episodes |
| rowspan="3"|2023
|Laila (voice) |Episode: "Doll's House" |
| Bupkis
|Monica |Episode: "ISO" |
| Scavengers Reign
| Ursula (voice) | 12 episodes |
| rowspan="2"|2024
|Janice (voice) |Episode: "Bidai" |
| Fantasmas
| Nancy | Episode: "Cookies and Spaghetti" |
| rowspan="2"|2025
| Goldie |Petey's Mom (voice) |Episode: "Tall Teeny/Pilroy" |
| Government Cheese
| {{TableTBA}} |
| TBA
| Priya | Upcoming series |
=Short videos=
| class="wikitable sortable"
! Year ! Title ! Role |
| 2012
| See You Then, Then | |
| 2013
| Sardines Out of A Can | Extra |
| rowspan="2"|2015
| The Truth About Meeting Women | |
| This is a Dream and I'm Going to Kill You
| Sunita |
| rowspan="3"|2016
| Why Wasn't It Perfect? | Haley Sharma |
| Vegas
| Vegas |
| The Place We Live
| Autumn |
| rowspan="2"|2017
| Snowy Bing Bongs Across the North Star Combat Zone | |
| I Brought Pie
| Alice |
| 2018
| Alpha Squadron | Alpha 4 / Chelsea |
| rowspan="3"|2019
| Regulation | Mia Nichols |
| Dick Pics! (A Documentary)
| |
| Others
| John's Other |
| 2020
| I Love to Wait | |
=Music videos=
| class="wikitable sortable" |
| Year
! Title ! Artist ! scope="col"| {{abbr|Ref.|Reference}} |
|---|
| 2010
| "Commotion" |
| 2014 |
References
{{reflist}}
External links
- {{IMDb name|4576371}}
{{authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mani, Sunita}}
Category:21st-century American actresses
Category:21st-century American dancers
Category:American female dancers
Category:American film actresses
Category:American television actresses
Category:American actresses of Indian descent
Category:American people of Indian Tamil descent
Category:Place of birth missing (living people)
Category:American women comedians
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