Rocketry, Gangs of Wasseypur and Aashram fame Anuritta K Jha has now ventured into writing

Anuritta K Jha’s story has a bit of everything. There is resilience, glamour, hard work and a strong commitment to taking on roles that are as varied as they are impactful. From her breakthrough in Rocketry: The Nambi Effect to her portrayal of a sadhvi in Aashram, Anuritta has evolved with each new character. She refuses to be typecast and wants to be a part of meaningful storytelling. As her web series Mithya 2 hits new milestones, she sheds light on both her craft and her philosophy.

Working with Madhavan

Anuritta says her experience of working with R Madhavan in the National Award-winning film Rocketry was a defining moment in her career. “Madhavan sir is a focused director and knew exactly what he wanted,” she shares. “He took a re-audition for me…it went on for good 10 to 12 minutes when he kept on giving me voice commands and I kept on changing my emotion; it was intense.” The result, of course, was a deeply impactful film that Anuritta is proud to be a part of.

Importance of meaningful roles

Having worked across genres, from critically acclaimed films like Mithila Makhana to popular web series such as Aashram and Asur 2, Anuritta’s approach to choosing roles is both deliberate and thoughtful. “I am very clear about the roles I want to do. Firstly, if the director is good, then I am absolutely in for the role. Then I look at the story, and after that I evaluate my character’s graph,” she says. She admits that in the past there were roles she wasn’t proud of, but the experience helped her identify her true path. “I have done a couple of films that I am not very happy about. But ever since I gained a better understanding of the kind of roles I wanted to do, things have changed.”

Shining in Gangs of Wasseypur

Anuritta’s acting career took a monumental leap with Gangs of Wasseypur, where she played Shama Parveen, a role that remains iconic even a decade later. “To this day, people come up to me and praise that role. It is absolutely unbelievable,” she says. Her first day on set was filled with nervousness and excitement. “I was filming the suhaag raat scene with Vineet, and everybody played a prank on me, saying that I really had to kiss him on screen! I had tears in my eyes,” she recalls with a laugh.

Addressing social issues

Anuritta’s choices are not just driven by her love for acting, but also her passion for addressing social issues. Roles in films like Unaccused and Pari & Pinocchio explore themes of marital rape and societal pressures, and Anuritta took these challenges head on. “As an actor, being given the opportunity to address a social cause is a privilege—something I am very grateful for,” she says. Playing a model suffering from bulimia in Pari & Pinocchio, she found the role deeply personal. “Unaccused was the project where I truly pushed myself. It was extremely exhausting—by the third or fourth day of the shoot, both my co-actor and I had bruises on our bodies due to the physicality involved,” she explains. But the appreciation and feedback she received made it all worthwhile.

In the spotlight

When Anuritta won the Channel V Get Gorgeous contest, she was just out of her 12th grade in Patna. “I was very, very young—just out of my 12th grade. I was quite naive and unprepared for the glamour industry,” she admits. It was an unexpected step into a world of beauty, fashion and fame, far removed from her simple life back in Bihar. Yet, this exposure opened doors to some of the most prestigious fashion events in the country—from Wills Fashion Week to Lifestyle Fashion Week—where she walked the ramp for top designers like Sabyasachi Mukherjee and Manish Malhotra.

Taking up writing

Anuritta has also ventured into writing and producing with her short film Holikadahen. “Writing has been a part of my life ever since I was a child,” she says, explaining that her family’s literary background influenced her creative journey. Although producing was not quite as fulfilling as she had hoped, she found joy in writing. “Writing is something that I’ve started expressing recently and I will continue doing that,” she affirms.

She explains the significance of writing as an actor’s tool. “As an actor, you don’t always get the kind of roles you want. So, writing started from that space of utilising my time more productively. But now I really enjoy it.”