TV actress Ankita Lokhande to star in Kangana's Manikarnika
TV actress Ankita Lokhande will star in the Kangana Ranaut starrer 'Manikarnika: The Queen Of Jhansi'. She'll play Jhalkaribai, a female soldier in Rani Laxmibai's army in the film. "I'm indebted...for this challenging role in a big-budget film scripted by Baahubali writer...alongside a National Award-winning actress like Kangana, who exudes power and is an inspiration to all women," said Ankita.
Ankita Lokhande, who rose to fame with the hit television show Pavitra Rishta, is all set to enter Bollywood. Ankita will make her debut with Kangana Ranaut in Manikarnika: The Queen Of Jhansi. She will playing Jhalkaribai, a solider who rose through the ranks in Rani Laxmibai's army to become a prominent advisor.Ankita told Mumbai Mirror, "I'd never heard of her before, not many have, but Jhalkaribai was one of the greatest heroes of our proud history. I'm honoured that I'll be telling her story to the world, fighting alongside Kangana's Rani Laxmibai." She has been training in sword-fighting with Hollywood action director Nick Powell for the last one and a half months to get the nuances of her character right.Manikarnika: The Queen Of Jhansi fell into Ankita's lap when the film's producer Kamal Jain, who she has known for a long time, approached her for the film. Ankita said, "I'm indebted to Kamal sir for this challenging role in a big-budget film scripted by Baahubali writer KV Vijayendra Prasad alongside a National Award-winning actress like Kangana, who exudes power and is an inspiration to all women. I'm looking forward to learning from her once we start shooting in August."According to reports, Manikarnika: The Queen Of Jhansi is scheduled to release on April 27, 2018. The film will reportedly clash with Tiger Shroff and Disha Patani-starrer Baaghi 2.