Ayilya Gopalakrishnan, better known by her stage nameAnanya, is an Indian actress who appears predominantly in Malayalam and Tamil language films as well as in a few, Telugu and Kannada films. She is also a singer and an archer.
Ananya was born as Ayilya to Malayali parents Gopalakrishnan Nair, a noted film producer, and Praseetha in Perumbavoor, Kerala.[2] She has a younger brother, Arjun. Her name was taken from her birth star (nakshatra) Aslesha, which is called Ayilyam in Malayalam.
She appeared as a child artist in one of her father's productions (executive producer), Pai Brothers (1995).[3] Ananya pursued a B.A. degree in Communicative English at St. Xavier's College for Women, Aluva.[2][3] During her childhood, she was an archer and won the State Championship.[4] While representing her college in a television reality show, Star Wars,[2] she was spotted by various directors and received acting offers. After declining five projects, she decided to give it a try, accepting to act in Positive.[3]
Film career
Her screen name was changed to Ananya when she was working in her debut Tamil film Naadodigal.[4] The film was a high commercial success,[5] and Ananya rose to fame with her performance in the film being appreciated.[citation needed] She went on to reprise the same role in its Malayalam remake Ithu Nammude Katha.[6] The film Shikkar alongside Mohanlal, gave her a big break in Malayalam. She did some thrilling scenes in the climax of the movie that impressed Mohanlal, which made him call her the "Vijayashanti" of Malayalam.[7] She also played a supporting role in Kandahar, which saw her sharing screen space with Mohanlal and Amitabh Bachchan.[8] In 2011, Ananya played one of the female lead roles in Engaeyum Eppothum, which received rave reviews and became a sleeper hit.[9][10]
In 2014, she appeared in Pulivaal, her first Tamil release after three years.[11]
As of 2018, she has Sigappu Rojakkal 2 in Tamil, Intintaa Annamayya in Telugu, and Ameya in Malayalam delayed for release.