# Lý Nhã Kỳ

Trần Thị Thanh Nhàn (born 19 July 1982), better known as Lý Nhã Kỳ is a Vietnamese actress, model and businesswoman. She is known for portraying Diem Kieu in VTV's series Kiều nữ và đại gia (The Beauty and the Wealthy [vi]). Since 2011, she has been serving as the Tourism ambassador of Vietnam. She was also ambassador for Operation Smile in Vietnam.

## Early Life

Trần Thị Thanh Nhàn, was born on July 19, 1982, in the port city of Vũng Tàu, in the Bà Rịa–Vũng Tàu province where she grew up in a small village. Her father, Mr. Trần Ngọc Lý was a North Vietnamese soldier who fought and was posted in Rừng Sác (now part of Cần Giờ District, Ho Chi Minh City) during the Vietnam War. He passed away in 2005 due to war injuries and was posthumously awarded the title of a Revolutionary Martyr. Her mother is originally from Thái Bình. At 16 with help of relatives she moved to Germany to study.
Aside from her native tongue Vietnamese, Kỳ is also fluent in English, German and Mandarin Chinese. Lý Nhã Kỳ explained the meaning behind her stage name: ‘Lý Nhã Kỳ is my stage name. ‘Lý’ is my father’s name (who has passed away), ‘Nhã’ comes from the name Nhàn (meaning gentle and refined), and ‘Kỳ’ was chosen by me because I believe that my life sometimes brings unexpected things!”

## Controversy

At the age of 16, she moved to Germany to study with help of relatives. Where she claimed she graduated from ‘Real University’. When fans said there is no such academic institution in Germany. The actress explained that Real is just the nickname and the official name of the school is called Alexander Wiegand University. “We have a slogan: Real People – Real Work – Real Action, so we call it Real for short. Also, Real comes from Alexander where we get the letters ER and AL from,” she said. However, when googling “Alexander Wiegand” or a related word it does not show any valid information. Readers in Germany also said there is no school by this name, except for a training school for pets. In an interview in 2007, the actress also said her father is a Russian who met her mother while he worked as an oil and gas expert in Vung Tau. But in her application for the Vietnam’s Tourism Ambassador title, she declared that her father is a Vietnamese was a martyr. Tran Nhat Hoang, Director of the Center for Sports and Tourism Promotion under the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, told an online newspaper that Ly Nha Ky’s father is confirmed a martyr. but nonetheless it sparked controversy regarding her false statements.
She wore a revealing low-cut dress and skirt at a play of Vietnam’s National Hero General Võ Nguyên Giáp at the Điện Biên Symphony, sparking angry backlash of unprofessionalism in Vietnamese media.
In April 2012, wedding photos and a marriage certificate dated August 18, 2000, surfaced online, showing a marriage between Trần Thị Thanh Nhàn (who shares the same birth name, birth date, and birthplace as her) and Dương Thiết Tâm a Vietnamese-German, leading to speculation that she had been married since the age of 18.
Suspected of holding a fake university graduation certificate.

## Filmography

| Title | Year | Role | Note |
| Tình yêu còn mãi / Love Prevails | 2006 | Trúc | |
| Chuyện tình yêu / Love Story | 2007 | Hoài Thu | |
| Ghen / Jealousy | 2007 | Ngọc Hoàn | |
| Giá mua một thượng đế / Prize To Buy A God | 2007 | Thạch Thảo | |
| Thám tử tư / The Private Invesgator | 2007 | | |
| Mười | 2007 | Young lady | |
| Em muốn làm người nổi tiếng / I'd Like To Be Famous | 2007 | | |
| Kiều nữ và đại gia / The Beauty and The Wealthy | 2008 | Diễm Kiều | VTV |
| Bước chân hoàn vũ (TV) / Universal Steps (Vietnamese version of 'Dancing With The Stars') | 2009 | | |
| Gió nghịch mùa / Wind From Different Season | 2009 | | |
| Nơi tình yêu bắt đầu / The Place Where Love Begins | 2009 | | |
| Shanghai | 2010 | Model | |
| Vàng trong cát / Mining Gold From Sand | 2011 | | Producer |
| Đại tướng Võ Nguyên Giáp và bản giao hưởng Điện biên | 2011 | | Play |
| Chiếc giường chia đôi / The Divided Bed | 2011 | Mỹ Anh | |
| Cold summer | 2012 | | |

## Endorsement

* Mercedes-Benz
* Avon Products