Acclaimed filmmaker Mira Nair has finally found her Amri...her Amrita Sher-Gil, the lead for her ambitious international project, after an extensive worldwide casting search. Mira's casting search that included actors like Triptii Dimri, Janhvi Kapoor, Ananya Panday, Wamiqa Gabbi and tanya Maniktala, stopped at Anjali Sivaraman, not only for her striking resemblance but also the emotional intensity she brought ino the character.
According to reports, Mira, along with the celebrated casting director Dilip Shankar, auditioned more than 100 actresses from around the world. The search reportedly stretched across Mumbai, London, and New York, considering both established stars and emerging talents for the role.
The team for the upcoming biopic, chronicling the life of Amrita Sher-Gil between 1915 and 1941, is currently shooting in Budapest, and besides Anjali, also stars Jim Sarbh and Hollywood star Emily Mortimer.
The young actress born in Kerala, got a chance to share the screen with Ranveer Singh for a mobile phone commercial, when she was just 21. It was her first modelling gig. The mysterious, bubbly young girl, determined to click a selfie with Ranveer, made her a familiar face in no time and was featured in Tarun Tahiliani and Sabyasachi's fashion campaigns.
Later, she made her screen debut with a web series- PM Selfiewallie, and then Netflix's Cobalt Blue, but the 2023 show Class, again a Netflix original, proved to be her turning point. Last year, she played the lead in Vetrimaaran's Tamil film, Bad Girl.
Though born in Kerala, the actress was raised across various parts of India. her father Vinod Sivaraman was a pilot in Indian Air Force, and her mother, Chitra Iyer, is a renowned playback singer. Though Anjali spent most of her formative years in Bengaluru, she later moved to Mumbai to chase her artistic aspirations.
She too, like many other actors of today's times, started her career behind the cameras. She started as an assistant director in an agency, ad then as a music producer's assistant. In fact, she even joined a band as a singer. The ad opportunity came through her college friend who worked as filmmaker Dibakar Banerjee's assistant back then.
For more updates, join/follow our WhatsApp, Telegram and YouTube channels.