Amita Suman says ‘someone like her’ shouldn’t be living her dream

Amita Suman has been given a glimpse of her life before her rise to stardom when she appears on the cover of Tatler.

The 25-year-old star of the Netflix series Shadow and Bone revealed that he was born in Bhedihari, southern Nepal, a town that had just 800 houses and a population of less than 6,000 people.

He added that his birthplace, where he lived until he was seven years old, had no running water, electricity or school, so he had no education in his early years.

Posing in a sleek white jacket and jewel-encrusted flapper dress, Amita said: “Someone like me is not meant to live their dream.” I really, really am. And I’m not complaining.

She added: ‘Maybe because I’ve had such a crazy life, it forced me to mature so much faster than the average person. I hate to say that.

But I’ve been through a lot in life. I remember it a lot because it was very different. We had absolutely nothing.

Her childhood also saw her have a brush with death, as she was about to be bitten by a very poisonous cobra.

She told the publication that she froze because she was not afraid of dying but of being bitten, but her grandfather saved her life after hitting him with a stick.

Amita said they told her: ‘Don’t move! Amita, don’t move an inch! as they battled the animal, which had killed two villagers that week.

After humble beginnings, the actress, who also posed in Tatler in a playful green and blue print dress and pink boots, first became interested in being on the small screen when she first saw a television.

A village woman pulled one out during a festival and said: ‘I really can’t remember what it was or what I saw: all I remember is how it made me feel. I thought there was another planet inside this television.

“I started playing it and talking to people. I asked him, ‘Can you hear me? Show me how I can be there with you. I used to sit with my grandfather for hours and pray that I would be that person on that TV. That’s when I knew what I wanted to do with my life.’

When Amita was seven years old, her family moved to Brighton and she had to learn English, revealing that she was introverted and insecure when she arrived because she couldn’t speak the language.

The 25-year-old Chic: The Shadow and Bone star revealed that she was born in Bhedihari, southern Nepal, a town that had just 800 houses and a population of less than 6,000 people.

The star, who trained at the Academy of Live and Recorded Arts, said, “I felt like an outsider in this country, but I found my self-esteem in the drama.”

“It gave me this freedom and confidence to live life through something else and forget about the person that I was.

He revealed that his stepmother told him: ‘if that’s what you want to do, that’s what you’ll do.’

Amita graduated in 2018 and landed minor roles in Casualty and Ackley Bridge.

After a few other roles, Amita was announced to appear in Shadow and Bone.

The adaptation of Leigh Bardugo’s The Grisha Trilogy and the Six of Crows Duology fantasy book series was a huge hit with fans.

She said: ‘I’ll never do it again, but I put my name in the search bar and the response was such a relief.

‘Everyone was relatively happy. It was a great start in what this world [of fantasy] it was going to be and how much it meant to all these people.

Stunner: Posing in a jewel-encrusted flapper-style dress, Amita said: “Someone like me is not meant to live their dream.” I really, really am. And I don’t complain

Rise to Fame: After a few other roles, Amita was announced to be appearing in Shadow and Bone, which was a huge hit with fans (show pictured in 2021)

‘So I felt accepted, but I will never give that power to anyone else.

‘The pressure was crazy; I was nervous on set every day, but it was the best experience of my life.’

The star also admitted that he sometimes likes to go clubbing and often goes to Clapham’s iconic venue, Infernos.

She said: ‘I mean, it can be fun. We went in there to be really goofy and look absolutely crazy on the dance floor and not give a shit about anyone else. It’s amazing.’

See the full article in the April issue of Tatler available for digital download and on newsstands starting Thursday, March 2