MANILA, Philippines – Veteran actress and award-winning writer Rustica Carpio died on Tuesday, February 1. She was 91.

Her death was confirmed by her niece Nessea Carpio in a February 2 Facebook post.

Carpio is known for her role in Brillante Mendoza’s film 2009 Lola, where she starred opposite Anita Linda. Her performance in the film earned her the Gawad Urian Award for Best Actress in 2010.

Born in Bulacan, Carpio began performing when she was 10 years old. In her first major stage role, she starred as the lead character Kikay in the play New Yorker in Tondo by Marcelino Agana Jr. – a role she would play for years afterwards, both in the Philippines and abroad.

She also appeared in the plays Shadow and Solitude, Mahirap ang Aking Daigdig, and Macbeth.

Her first film role was Chayong in Ishmael Bernal’s 1976 film Nunal sa Tubig. More recently, she appeared in the 2012 films Captive and Aparisyon.

Apart from acting, she was also an academic, winning the Fulbright and International House scholarships to study speech education in New York. 

She was also an educator, teaching at University of Sto. Tomas, Polytechnic University of the Philippines, and Far Eastern University. – Rappler.com