Yashika Aannand


Yashika Aannand is an Indian film actress, television personality and model who works mainly in Tamil cinema. She was born in a Punjabi family on 4 August 1999 in New Delhi. She debuted as an actress in the Dhuruvangal Pathinaaru, before earning further recognition for her role in the comedy, Iruttu Araiyil Murattu Kuththu. She is also a fashion model.

Career

Aannand began acting after being an Instagram model. At 14, she was filmed for Inimey Ippadithan alongside Santhanam but her role was later deleted after she could not attend a song shoot. She then portrayed a swimming instructor in Kavalai Vendam, which became her first theatrical release.
Aannand's breakthrough was in the 2016 film, Dhuruvangal Pathinaaru. Shot on a small budget, the film was successful and won recognition for its cast members. She then appeared in Paadam and Thambi Ramaiah's Maniyaar Kudumbam.
Aannand then appeared in Iruttu Araiyil Murattu Kuththu. Shot in Thailand, the film featured her alongside other actresses such as Vaibhavi Shandilya and Chandrika Ravi, and was one of the few comedy films produced in the Tamil film industry. The film performed well at the box office. Aannand has regularly raised concerns for female empowerment in society.
In 2018, she appeared in the second season of the Bigg Boss Tamil reality show hosted by Kamal Haasan. She had earlier been approached to be in the inaugural season, but she refused the offer. She was evicted on day 98, finishing the show in fifth place. She also received the cash prize of 5 lakhs for winning certain tasks during the second season of the premiere programme before getting evicted. She later appeared as a mentor in Star Vijay's "Jodi Unlimited" TV series, which aired in 2019.
Aannand then appeared in an animated Zombie film titled Zombie as the lead actress.

Me Too allegations

In 2018, Aannand identified herself as a victim during the MeToo campaign in India, where she alleged that a director had tried to abuse her by asking for sexual favors in order to gain a part in his film. She refused, and accused the director of harassing her.

Filmography

Denotes films that have not yet been released

YearFilmRoleLanguageNotes
2016Kavalai VendamSwimming instructorTamilDebut film
2016Dhuruvangal PathinaaruShrutiTamil
2017PaadamHindi teacherTamil
2018Iruttu Araiyil Murattu KuththuKavyaTamil
2018Maniyaar KudumbamHerselfTamilSpecial appearance in the song "Adi Pappaali Pazhame"
2018NOTAShilpaTamil
2019Kazhugu 2HerselfTamilSpecial appearance in the song "Sakalakala Valli"
2019Zombie AishwaryaTamil
2020Ivan Than UthamanTamilFilming
2020Raja BheemaHerselfTamilFilming, Special appearance in a song

Television