Ankita Lokhande Jain (born Tanuja Lokhande; 19 December 1984) is an Indian actress who mainly works in Hindi films and television. She made her acting debut with an award-winning role in Pavitra Rishta (2009-2014). One of the highest paid television actors in India, she is a recipient of three Gold Awards, one Indian Television Academy Award and Indian Telly Award each.

Lokhande made her film debut with Kangana Ranaut's Manikarnika: The Queen of Jhansi (2019), receiving Zee Cine Award for Best Female Debut nomination. She has since starred in Baaghi 3 (2020).

Early life

Lokhande was born as Tanuja Lokhande, on 19 December 1984 in Indore She was born in a Marathi family, to Shashikant Lokhande and Vandana Phadnis Lokhande, a teacher. She also has two brothers Sooraj and Arun, and a sister Jyoti. After graduating she moved to Mumbai in 2005 to pursue a career in acting. She has been a badminton champion, during her early days.

Career

Debut and rise to stardom (2009–2018)

After participating in India's Best Cinestars Ki Khoj (2007–09), Lokhande won the lead role of Archana Deshmukh in Ekta Kapoor's daily soap Pavitra Rishta. She portrayed Archana opposite Sushant Singh Rajput and Hiten Tejwani from 2009 to 2014.[11][12] Pavitra Rishta took a generation leap in 2013 and Lokhande also began playing Archana's granddaughter Ankita Karmarkar, opposite Karan Veer Mehra, until the series ended in 2014.

Lokhande participated in Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa 4, where she was placed 5thand Comedy Circus ka Naya Daur. She did two episodes for Ek Thhi Naayka, opposite Sachin Shroff.

After a two-year gap from acting and her separation from Rajput, there were reports that Lokhande was set for a movie debut with a role in Sanjay Leela Bhansali's period drama Padmaavat (2018).However she left the movie, replying that she was not ready for film.

The following year, speculation spread that she had been signed for Girish Malik's film Torbaaz along with Sanjay Dutt. However, rumours proved to be untrue after Malik stated that Lokhande was not going to be involved with the film.

Film debut and expansion (2019–present)

In 2018, Lokhande announced that she would make her film debut and would appear in the role of Jhalkaribai, a warrior in Krish and Kangana Ranaut's joint directorial venture Manikarnika: The Queen of Jhansi, an epic drama based on the life of Rani Lakshmi Bai. The film received a theatrical premiere during the eve of Republic Day 2019 and did quite well at the box-office, becoming her first commercial success. Bollywood Hungama noted, “Ankita Lokhande as Jhalkari Bai is excellent and leaves a tremendous mark in limited screen time.”

Lokhande next starred in Sajid Nadiadwala's action thriller film Baaghi 3 in 2020, the third part of the Baaghi trilogy, alongside Tiger Shroff, Shraddha Kapoor and Riteish Deshmukh. She played the role of Kapoor's elder sister married to Deshmukh's character.The film was released prior to the shut down of theatres owing to COVID-19 pandemic in India, which affected the box office performance. Filmfare stated, “The two girls Shraddha and Ankita, despite the build-up about them both being fiery characters, have nothing to do really in the film.”

Lokhande reprised her role as Archana Deshmukh in web series Pavitra Rishta: It's never to late along with Shaheer Sheikh from 2021 to 2022. In February 2022, Lokhande participated in StarPlus' Smart Jodi with her husband, Vicky Jain, subsequently becoming the winner of the season.

In 2023, she played a women going through divorce in the film The Last Coffee. Times of India wrote, “Ankita Lokhande looks stunning and shines brightly in emotional scenes.”

Personal life and media image
Lokhande co-starred with Sushant Singh Rajput in Pavitra Rishta, and they began dating in 2010, Rajput proposed to her in the dance reality show Jhalak Dikhlaja 4. In a 2016 interview, the couple even spoke of marrying each other. However the same year couple parted their ways. Lokhande later said in a interview that Rajput wanted to focus on his career and hence they parted ways.

In 2019, Lokhande announced her relationship with Vicky Jain, a businessman.Lokhande married Jain on 14 December 2021 in Mumbai.
Lokhande has established herself as one of the most popular and highest paid television actress in India.[4][5] She ranked 7th in Rediff.com's Top 10 Television Actresses list of 2014