Avantika Vandanapu Is Hollywood And Bollywood’s Future It Girl
The Mean Girls actress received racist backlash after fans said she should be cast as Rapunzel in a live-action version of Disney's Tangled, but she's not letting that stop her rise. The actress has said she has aspirations as a producer.
Avantika Vandanapu is best known for her role as Karen Shetty (née Smith) in Tina Fey's 2024 remake of Mean Girls. The success of Vandanapu, known mononymously as Avantika, is exciting, as many couldn't imagine Hollywood casting Asian actors in titular roles 20 years ago. However, amidst the flowers that Avantika is receiving for her success, she has also been on the receiving end of racist backlash: when fans floated her name as their dream choice for a live-action remake of the popular Disney movie Tangled, others took to X and TikTok to decry that choice because of Avantika's race.
In response to this backlash, Indian news outlets have stepped in to support Avantika and gone on to further highlight that much of this criticism is built on baseless claims. Never Have I Ever star Maitreyi Ramakrishnan also weighed in on X, saying, "And they finally woke up to realize it was all just rumors and the sources never existed. ... And to the racists, y’all still need a hobby (for real)," with a clown face emoji beside it.
But Avantika hasn't let this mini controversy stop her meteoric rise. Ahead of her upcoming horror film, and with other starring roles no doubt on the way, we've rounded up what you need to know about Avantika Vandanapu.
She was born in Union City, California, and is Telegu-American
Avantika was born on January 25, 2005 and grew up in Union City California in an Indian Telegu-speaking family. Her mother Anupama is from Hyderabad and her father Srikanth is from Nizamabad, according to an interview Avantika did with an Indian news outlet. Both cities are located in Telangana, India where Telegu is the most-spoken language.
In the same interview Avantika noted that in addition to the creative arts, her academics were of the utmost importance to her and her parents.
"As in any Indian family, I grew up prioritizing academics but also had grand aspirations in creative fields. I feel very grateful to my parents and also knowing that I was allowed the opportunities to thoroughly explore both academics and creative arts," said Avantika. "I studied at a very academically rigorous school in California, but after school, I usually had ballet, Kuchipudi, and Kathak classes. Dance was my biggest passion as a kid, and it naturally led me towards acting. I always credit dance with originating my dreams in the performing arts."
As per Avantika's LinkedIn, she attended Granada Hills Charter High School before attending college.
She got her start in Indian Cinema
In 2015, at the age of 10, she made her movie debut in a Telugu film called Brahmotsavam starring prominent Telegu film stars Mahesh Babu, Kajal Aggarwal, and Samantha.
As per the Hindustan Times, Avantika was honored to star alongside Mahesh Babu by playing his cousin in the film. Babu is basically Tegelu film royalty and one of the biggest stars in a subject of Indian film called "Tollywood."
“To have my first opportunity in Tollywood with Mahesh was nothing short of a dream come true. Working as a child artiste in India, especially in my mother tongue, helped me become comfortable with the idea of pursuing a career in entertainment as a child,” Avantika said.
She goes to Columbia University
As of this summer, Avantika will be an incoming Sophomore at Columbia University in New York City and is studying cultural anthropology at Columbia College.
In February, she did an interviewed with the Columbia Spectator discussing her life in school and how she manages to juggle her academic life with her professional life.
"It’s been a lot of sending my publicist and my team my class schedule, and them scheduling Raising Cane’s at 10 a.m. right before Lit Hum [Literary Humanities] starts.," Avantika told her college paper. "My car drops me right in front of Hamilton so that I could run to Lit Hum, and studying in the car—it’s been a lot of that.”
She says she feels grateful to be a part of a community outside of Hollywood where she can craft her own interests outside of acting.
“I think being in a community where people feel creative, and smart, and intelligent, bright, and thoughtful in a capacity beyond just the entertainment industry has been really fulfilling,” Vandanapu said.
She was named South Asian Person of the Year by Harvard University
Last week, Avantika was named South Asian Person of the Year by Harvard University for her contributions to cinema and to both the American and Indian film industries.
“Being honored by such a prestigious institution as Harvard University is truly humbling and incredibly motivating. This award not only acknowledges my efforts but also underscores the significance of narratives transcending borders and the crucial role of Indian representation in global media,” said Avantika, as per NDTV.
She wants to own a production company in the future and has Bollywood dreams
In an interview with Teen Vogue, Avantika discusses the myriad of projects she's been involved in besides Mean Girls, which include her role in the Netflix film Senior Year alongside Rebel Wilson and Mean Girls co-star Angourie Rice and her guest role in Max's The Sex Lives of College Girls with Renee Rapp, another Mean Girls alum.
But when asked what's next in her career, Avantika revealed that she was developing a series adaptation of the fantasy novel A Crown of Wishes for Disney+ which she is set to produce and have the lead role in. She added that she plans to own her own production company in the next five years with the hopes of shedding light on the South Asian diaspora.
“I would love to have a thriving production company in the next five years,” the actress said.
In the same interview, it's noted that, due to her start in Indian films, she has plans to break into Bollywood someday.
