Ankita Lokhande, born on December 19, 1984, hails from Indore, Madhya Pradesh. She always wanted to become an actress and hence, shifted to Mumbai to fulfil her dream. She was also interested in sports and was a state-level badminton champion. (All photos/Ankita Lokhande's official Instagram account)

Ankita Lokhande started her television career in 2006 with the talent-hunt show Idea Zee Cinestars, as a participant.

Ankita Lokhande was initially set to make her TV debut with 'Bali Umar Ko Salam.' She had successfully auditioned for the show and even signed on the dotted line but it never saw the light of day.

Ankita Lokhande got her big break in 2009 as she got signed for Ekta Kapoor's TV series Pavitra Rishta. The show, which aired from 2009 to 2014, earned name and fame for Ankita as she bagged several awards for her role in the show.

Ankita Lokhande met her now ex-boyfriend Sushant Singh Rajput while shooting for 'Pavitra Rishta'. The duo was not on talking terms initially, but, gradually became friends and eventually fell in love and were in a relationship for 6 years.

Ankita Lokhande and Sushant Singh Rajput soon became the IT couple of Television. The couple had been in a live-in relationship for quite a few years and Sushant had even proposed Ankita in Dubai in 2015, during their New Year vacation.

Sushant Singh Rajput had also proposed to Ankita Lokhande on national television while they were a part of 'Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa', season 4. Well, for the unversed, Ankita is a trained dancer and showed off her dancing skills in 2011 as a contestant on 'Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa'.

In May 2016, Sushant Singh Rajput finally announced his break-up with Ankita Lokhande. Ever since rumours of the couple calling it quits started doing the rounds, there were reports speculating the reason behind them ending their six-year relationship, right from Ankita being an alcoholic to Sushant's growing closeness to his co-stars.

Sushant Singh Rajput tweeted, 'Neither she was an alcoholic nor I am a womaniser. People do Grow apart & its unfortunate. Period!! [sic]'

Ankita Lokhande began limiting her public appearance post her break-up with Sushant Singh Rajput in 2016 and made sure only her work does the talking!

On the work front, Ankita Lokhande also showed her funny side on the reality show 'Comedy Circus', but, looked like the audience couldn't accept her as a comedienne.

After a hiatus of almost five years, Ankita Lokhande was seen making her Bollywood debut with Kangana Ranaut's Manikarnika: The Queen Of Jhansi. A woman soldier in Rani Laxmibai's army, Jhalkari Bai eventually rose to the position of an advisor to the Queen. She was a Dalit hero and is still being worshipped by them.

There are many statues in the honour of Jhalkari Bai but yet she is one true unsung hero. To give her 100 per cent to the character, Ankita Lokhande trained in horse-riding and sword fighting for 30-35 days, under the guidance of Hollywood action director, Nick Powell. Marathi actor Vaibhav Tatwawaadi, who played Chimaji Appa in Bajirao Mastani (2015), romanced Ankita in the film.

After the release of Ankita's look in Manikarnika: The Queen Of Jhansi, her ex-boyfriend Sushant Singh Rajput wished her success in her Bollywood debut. The Raabta actor commented on the post, 'It looks absolutely great Ankita. I am extremely happy to see this. May God bless you with lots of success and happiness.' Ankita replied: 'Thank you Sushant. I wish you the same.'

Here's wishing a very happy birthday to Ankita Lokhande!