From sharing an apartment with Shraddha Arya to changing her name from Tanuja; A look at Bigg Boss 17 contestant Ankita Lokhande's journey into showbiz and lesser known facts

Bigg Boss 17's Ankita Lokhande has been one of the most trending contestants of the season. The actress has come a long way in the entertainment industry. While her die-hard fans surely know everything about her, here are some interesting facts about the actress and her journey into TV and Films. Here's what you need to know:

Tanuja Lokhande is Ankita's real name. Her nickname, according to reports, is Ankita. When she entered the television profession, she chose to go by this name. Indore is where the actress is from. Her father Shashikant Lokhande, was a banker, and mother Vandana, a teacher. She only graduated from high school in her hometown.

As per reports, Ankita Lokhande had never considered a career in acting. She aspired to be an air hostess and enrolled in the Frankfinn Institute of Air Hostess Training to do so. During her training, Ankita auditioned for India's Best Cinestar Ki Khoj in Indore and was chosen.

While having a heartfelt conversation with Munawar, Ankita shared her journey into acting, "I had completed 17 and as soon as I was 18, I was in Mumbai. I was always smart and aware that someone could not fool me. I didn't make fake promises. I knew what I wanted to do. I was 21 years old when I started with Pavitra Rishta. I remember I had a time when I was completely broke and I had to decide between eating food or going for an audition. How long would I ask for money from my parents?"

In an exclusive conversation with ETimes TV, Ankita shared how she started acting with Cinestars Ki Khoj, "It was a very different time. I remember we all had come from different cities to Mumbai and we just wanted to give our best. When I came to Mumbai for Cinestars Ki Khoj, we would stay together. Four girls used to stay in one apartment. Shraddha Arya was one of the contestants with me on the show and it feels so nice that we are doing so great in our careers. That journey was totally different as we all didn’t know anything. We learnt everything on the show be it acting, how to dress up or what not to do. We learnt acting from Kishore Namit Kapoor sir. I will cherish all those memories."

Ankita exclusively opened up about bagging Pavitra Rishta with ETimes TV, "I got a call to audition for Pavitra Rishta and I went to give the audition. I did not know anything about the role. I only knew that she was a Maharashtrian girl. I remember my Dadaji would always say to wear a bindi, because of our Marathi culture and during his time, girls would wear a saree and bindi from class 10th and he would ask my parents also to make me wear it. So I just recalled it and I wore a black bindi for the audition. The audition did not go that great but I don’t know what was written in my destiny that Ekta Ma’am liked me and in the next 5 days I was finalised and I was doing Pavitra Rishta."

While talking about her early struggles with Munawar in Bigg Boss 17 house, she shared, "I used to get Rs 2000 per day in Pavitra Rishta when I started in 2009. I had this feeling of seeing Rs 50,000 for the first time in my account. I had never seen that huge amount back then and this was my first pay cheque. It is very important for the family to support me on this journey. My parents were there for me despite people taunting them."

When in The Kapil Sharma Show, Kapil asked Ankita Lokhande about her saree story, that she bought 300 sarees for Pavitra Rishta, Ankita said, "I had bought all my sarees for Pavitra Rishta and there were around 300 of them, I used to get them from Calcutta specially curated for me and made in cotton so that I could shoot in them for long hours."

Ankita Lokhande took a hiatus from acting after Pavitra Rishta. In 2019, she made her Bollywood debut in Kangana Ranaut's Manikarnika: The Queen of Jhansi. Ankita will also appear in Baaghi 3 opposite Tiger Shroff, Shraddha Kapoor, and Riteish Deshmukh in 2020. She is now locked inside the Bigg Boss 17 house.

Ankita Lokhande married Vicky Jain in December 2021 in a grand wedding ceremony. Vicky was a common friend of Ankita and Sushant, they started dating, and after a long courtship period, the duo decided to tie the knot. The actress was previously dating the late actor Sushant Singh Rajput. The couple dated for six years before splitting up in 2016.

While talking to Munawar in the Bigg Boss house, Ankita shared the reason behind their breakup, "There was no reason for the breakup. I was blank, everything turned upside down in a night. It was a sudden breakup. See when you are growing in your career people tell you a lot of things. It was his matter and I didn't stop him. It was his life and I cannot control it. My only concern was that he should have told me then I would have been a bit prepared to take it. He suddenly disappeared."