Singer-actress Layla Sania Khairuzikri, 20, has become a household name, ever since she played the compassionate Cikgu Aisyah in Ryon Lee’s heart-warming Chinese New Year film Small Town Heroes this year.

That role landed her the Most Promising Actress award at the recent 32nd Malaysian Film Festival (FFM32).

Her major “asset” which earned her a strong following and contributed to her FFM32 victory is fluency in Mandarin, a language which her parents encouraged her to learn during her primary schooldays.

“Mandarin is a fascinating language, and I’m always thankful to my parents for enrolling me in Sekolah Menengah Jenis Kebangsaan (Cina) Chong Hwa, Kuala Lumpur,” said Layla in an interview with Berita Harian Online today.

“And when Ryon came looking for a Mandarin-fluent Malay actress to play Cikgu Aisyah in Small Town Heroes, I decided to go for it, as the character appeared to be tailor-made for me.”

Layla admitted that competition for Most Promising Actress was tough, as she was up against more experienced actresses such as Bernie Chan, Alicia Amin and Amelia Henderson.

“It was my very first film, and I didn’t expect to win. From the bottom of my heart, I want to thank the organisers of FFM32 for the award, as well as everyone involved in Small Town Heroes, for making my dream come true.”

Layla, the eldest of four siblings, “learnt a lot” on the set of the film, and her favourite moment was wrestling a snatch thief in one of the scenes.

“In fact, many viewers loved my character, describing her as the most heroic.”

As for playing a teacher, Layla actually taught part-time in a kindergarten several years ago. She is currently pursuing a children’s education course at Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman (Unitar).

Layla became the second Malaysian artiste after Yuna to be featured on a digital billboard in Times Square, New York, the United States on July 20 last year.

Her appearance was to represent Malaysian singers in the Equal campaign by Spotify, which highlights female artistes around the world.

Layla has released two Chinese singles Traveller and By Your Side. In 2020, she performed Taiwanese singer Tiger Huang’s song You’re The Only One In My Heart in the reality show I Can See Your Voice.

News and images from New Straits Times