Anandi gets a new face, Pratyusha Banerjee out

Pratyusha Banerjee will no longer play the popular character Anandi in the hit soap Balika Vadhu on Colors, and will be replaced on March 4.

There had been buzz that the actress will be dropped from the show, but she had gone on record claiming that she would never leave it.

Now, she confirms, saying: "My last day of shooting was on February 24. I have quit the show.”

So why did she quit the show that made her an overnight star? "I could not give the required time, and that's why the production house faced a lot of problems. So I discussed quitting five-six months ago. They asked me to wait, as they had to look for a suitable replacement," she explains, adding, "Plus, I want to move on in life.”

What about the rumours that her tantrums did not go down well with the production house? "I don’t think I threw tantrums. The production was like a family and arguments keep happening in the family, right?” she says.

"I have lived Anandi for almost three years. It is very close to me and it’s a new twist in my life. Everybody was upset on the last day of the shoot. I will miss the show, my team and the channel,” she says.

What next? "I will take a short break; and then take up something. But I cannot reveal much now," she says.

According to sources, actress Toral Rasputra -- of Zee TV’s Chhoti Si Zindagi -- will replace Pratyusha in Balika Vadhu. She had earlier played the protagonist Priyanka Sethi in Disney Channel India's superhit show, Dhoom Machaao Dhoom