Who is Pratibha Ranta? Actress who made her big screen debut with Laapata Ladies, is Heeramandi’s Shama now

Once a popular television star, Pratibha Ranta recently shot to overnight fame after starring in Kiran Rao's Laapata Ladies. She is now being seen in Heeramandi and everybody wants to know who is she.

Updated on May 02, 2024  |  06:28 PM IST |  818.6K
All you need to know about Heeramandi and Laapata Ladies actress Pratibha Ranta (Instagram/@pratibha_ranta)
All you need to know about Heeramandi and Laapata Ladies actress Pratibha Ranta (Instagram/@pratibha_ranta)

Kiran Rao recently returned to the director’s seat after over a decade, with Laapata Ladies. The small-town-based movie starred Nitanshi Goel, Pratibha Ranta, and Sparsh Shrivastav playing the lead. Although the storyline received praise, Jaya, portrayed by Pratibha, resonated with women worldwide. Her acting quickly captured the hearts of moviegoers.

While people were already in the hangover of Laapata Ladies, Pratibha was seen again in Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s recently released series Heeramandi. Now, the internet cannot stop talking about her.

Who is Pratibha Ranta?

Born on December 17, 2000, Pratibha Ranta hails from Himachal Pradesh’s Shimla. She did her schooling at the Convent of Jesus & Mary School and graduated in filmmaking from Mumbai’s Usha Pravin Gandhi College of Management. As per IMDb, Pratibha began her career as a theater artist and professional dancer in her hometown and later moved to Mumbai to pursue acting and modeling.

After winning the title of Miss Mumbai in 2018, Pratibha bagged Zee TV’s popular show Qurbaan Hua in 2020 and became a household name. Before featuring in Laapata Ladies, Ranta also starred in another daily soap titled Aadha Ishq. In a recent interview with PTI, Pratibha revealed that she decided to transition to the big screen because she felt there wasn’t much growth in TV.

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She began auditioning and luckily she was soon selected for Laapata Ladies. "I was like , 'Arey waah! Yeh kya ho gaya” Pratibha recalled her reaction saying she was initially called to meet Aamir Khan and perform in front of him. “I struggled a bit because I am a huge fan.” Even though the 3 Idiots actor liked her performance, she wasn’t given any concrete affirmation at that time.


The 23-year-old added, “But while exiting the room, I felt that maybe this was one of the best days of my life because I was very honest. I was like 'I will see what happens next.' I got a call that I had been selected as soon as I reached home.”

Pratibha Ranta shines bright in Heeramandi

In the recently released period drama, Pratibha plays the role of Shama who is courtesan Sanjeeda Sheikh’s daughter. In Heeramandi, Shama can’t wait to become a courtesan but her mother is against her wish. Sanjeeda’s character even tries to conceal her youth from the Madam of the house - Mallikajaan (Manisha Koirala).

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Pratibha Ranta talks about her Heeramandi and Laapata Ladies characters 

Calling her Heeramandi character ‘nice, yet complex’, Pratibha recently said to Indulge, “I was able to see another version of myself through her because, at times, you experience things through your characters, that you may not experience in real life.” Talking about Laapataa Ladies, she said that she was able to relate to her character Jaya and gave spontaneous reactions but for Shama, she had to create the situations in mind to understand how the character would react in reality. 

In the same interview, Pratibha revealed that she got Heeramandi after wrapping Laapata Ladies and prays that she gets to play a lead in some SLB project soon. From being a small-town woman in Laapata Ladies to a rebel courtesan in Heeramandi, Pratibha has proved her mettle strongly within two months only. Now that these movies have chosen her, the audiences can’t wait to see what Pratibha Ranta chooses next.

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ALSO READ: Wondered why Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s biggest titles revolve around courtesans? Know what influences Heeramandi director

Credits: PTI, IMDb, Indulge
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Aditya Sagar is an Entertainment Journalist who holds a true-blue Bollywood heart and has his ears tuned to the

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