Samyuktha Shanmughanathan aka Samyuktha Karthik is in the news. Ever since she got married to Anirudha Srikkanth in Chennai on November 27, there has been a lot of curiosity about her.
She is a graduate civil engineer who worked full-time at Infosys before entering the entertainment industry. Her portrayal of Princess Rudhra in the Tamil serial Chandrakumari earned her popularity. Bigg Boss Tamil Season 4 brought her more fame, making her a household name in Tamil Nadu.
The model and actress was previously married to Karthik Shankar and they have a son together. Samyuktha has opened up about why her first marriage ended.
During the COVID-19 lockdown, she found out that her husband Karthik Shankar, who was working in Dubai, had been living with another woman for over four years. The discovery shocked her. Unable to travel, she felt trapped.
TV anchor Bhavna Balakrishnan supported her during this phase and pressured her to try for Bigg Boss. She finalized her divorce from Karthik earlier this year.
The Coimbatore native first rose to prominence after winning Miss Chennai 2007. She later moved into films and appeared in titles like Madras Mafia Company, Tughlaq Durbar and Varisu.
In 2024, she got engaged to Anirudha Srikkanth, son of former Indian opener Krishnamachari Srikkanth. Anirudha, who played for Chennai Super Kings (CSK) from 2008 to 2013, now works as a commentator. He was earlier married to model-actor Arthi Venkatesh.
Anirudha and Samyuktha found each other after difficult divorces. They reportedly met through mutual friends in Chennai’s social and entertainment circle. Their friendship slowly turned into a deeper bond.
Some gossip channels claimed that Anirudh’s ex-wife, model Aarti Venkatesh, was once close to Samyukth. However, neither of them ever confirmed such details.
For most of 2025, the two were often seen together at various events. Samyuktha made this public when she shared a Diwali photo with Anirudha.
Wedding photos
After she shared her wedding photos on Instagram, Tamil actress Sneha was one of the first people to congratulate her saying, “Congratulations darling, I’m so happy for you.”
Actress Aishwarya Rajesh also commented, “Congratulations Sam and Ani.”
