A little over a year has elapsed since the second season of 30 Weds 21, the show that made Ananya a household name released. As she awaits the release of her upcoming Aha original web series, Artham Ayinda Arun Kumar (AAAK), the official remake of the Arre original YouTube series Official Chukyagiri, she tells that there is not much difference between shows shot for YouTube and OTT platform. “It is my approach to acting that has really changed things for me along the way. I picked up a lot of things from the directors I have worked with. Earlier, I used to follow their instructions solely — now I feel confident enough to make some decisions regarding my own as well. I am still a director’s actor, I will always be one, but I feel more confident to incorporate my own inputs into my performances,”says Ananya.
Ananya will be reprising the role played by Mithila Palkar in the original. Reflecting on the changes made to her character Pallavi, she says, “I play the role of a girl next door. It is a very subtle, quiet character. Jonathan (Edwards), our director has worked a lot on nativising the character to suit local sensibilities. She is a girl who moved to Hyderabad a couple of years ago, but has made the city her own now.” Continuing to talk more about the character, specifically, the inputs she brought to the table, Ananya says, “I am from Warangal, but my entire schooling took place in Hyderabad. The Telangana dialect comes naturally to me. I, however, did not want Pallavi to have any accent, so I opted to speak neutrally throughout the series.
This is, at the end of the day, a show about Arun, not Pallavi. Accents usually stand out, so it felt best not to have one with Pallavi, a very simple, regular person.” Another major change from the Hindi original in terms of her character is the lack of spectacles, which were a part of Mithila’s look in the original. Replying to the same, Ananya says, “It was the director’s decision. We did not want my character to look so brainy. The character had to seem more at home with the marketing company she works at.”
The character she plays in AAAK is worlds apart from the extroverted Meghana alias Maggi she played in 30 Weds 21. When asked about who her real-life persona feels closer to, “I think the way I think is more like Pallavi, subtle and reluctant to seek attention. But that is definitely not who I am on the outside (laughs).” All of 22, and just out of college, is she afraid of getting typecast in the same kind of urban, bubbly roles? “On some level, it is happening. I do look young, it is not unreasonable on their end as well. I hope I get to have more opportunities as time goes on. I would love to do more versatile roles. Action is one genre I really want to be a part of,” signs off Ananya.