Ananya Panday's Inspiration For CTRL Character Nella. Any Guesses?

Ananya Panday is making waves with the release of her latest film CTRL. In the movie, she portrays the character of Nella Awasthi, a content creator. But did you know her biggest inspiration for playing this role? It was none other than her cousin Alanna Panday and her husband, Ivor McCray. Ananya herself revealed this interesting detail. She said, “I see a lot of influencers, but my cousin Alanna and her husband are couple bloggers. They make vlogs about everything – from when they met, to their wedding, to her pregnancy, and even her journey with their baby. They've covered it all on their YouTube channel. Watching them was a close-to-home reference, helping me understand the sacrifices required to be a public figure, especially when your life is exposed even more than an actor's,” in an interaction with Bollywood Hungama. 

Alanna Panday is the daughter of Chikki Panday who is the brother of Ananya Panday's father, veteran actor Chunky Panday. ICYDK: Alanna and Ivor McCray run a joint YouTube channel where they often post special anecdotes from their lives. Alanna is a social media influencer and content creator who delights fans with her personal and professional updates, significant milestones and lifestyle hacks among other things. 

Alanna and Ivor got married on March 16 last year. The couple welcomed their baby boy Edward Ivor River this year in July. The proud parents dropped a video on their YouTube channel documenting the birth of their son. In another upload, Alanna shared her daily routine with her newborn as a first-time mom. 

Coming to Ananya Panday, her latest offering CTRL is receiving praise and applause from fans and critics alike. Directed by Vikramaditya Motwane, the cyber-thriller explores the grim reality of the web and the dangers of AI. Last month, the makers unveiled the CTRL's trailer sparking intrigue among viewers. The video featured Ananya as Nella who gets cheated on by her partner Joe played by Vihaan Samat. Driven by vendetta, she allows an AI application called Control Your Life to “erase” the memories, pain and suffering caused by her ex. But, the AI tool seems to twist the instruction into a dangerous output. The result? Joe goes missing. 

Meanwhile, Alanna Panday made her OTT debut with the reality series The Tribe, produced by Karan Johar's Dharmatic Entertainment.