Currently based in Mumbai, Urmila, daughter of Giridhar Mahanta and Ramala Mahanta, spent most of her childhood in Sonapur, a small hamlet near Guwahati, Assam.
Her love for acting started at an early age. ‘I used to depict various characters in front of the mirror when I was little, taking inspiration from the TV.’ She reveals one of the highest points of her career was the moment she got accepted into the Film and Television Institute of India. ‘After three rounds of auditions, I was selected and even scored the second rank (national) during the entrance examinations.’
Urmila took her first steps in the industry when she was cast in Assamese television serials like Murder and Tejimola for Doordarshan. Her big break came in 2012 when she was cast as the leading lady in Vazhakku Enn 18/9, a crime thriller directed by the well-known Tamil filmmaker Balaji Sakthivel. The film won the national award for the Best Tamil Film in 2012. Urmila was nominated for the Best Female Debutant Award at two major award ceremonies, namely the 2nd South Indian International Film Awards and the 7th Vijay Awards.
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