Real Life of India Eisley and Her "Secret Life" as Ashley Juergens

India Eisley is the teen actress who plays the role of Ashley Juergens on The Family Channel's teen drama (some say comedy), " The Secret Life of The American Teenager." This is India's first major acting role but it wasn't a big struggle for her to get it. India says she went over for the audition and was chosen on the spot, so she really lucked out.

In another interview I got a bit of kick out of, they apparently didn't know that India's mother is quite famous and asked her how she feels working with film legend, Molly Ringwald (who plays her mother on the show). India is the daughter of 60s film legend, Olivia Hussey, star of Franco Zeffirelli's Romeo and Juliet (1968). Olivia also played Norman Bates' mother in Psycho IV. India grew up around movie sets and says that it wasn't a question of whether she would be an actress, it was more a matter of when. Her mother wanted her to wait till she was at least in her teens so she would not fall into the child star syndrome. India's mom also began acting in her teens and was only 15 herself when she began work on Romeo and Juliet. India answered the question about Molly Ringwald quite graciously while still managing to let it be known that her mother is her favorite actress. India's father is musician, actor and stuntman, David Glen Eisley, son of actor Anthony Eisley.

India is her father's only child. Her mother's first marriage was to Dean Martin's son, Dean Paul and India has a half-brother, Alexander, from that union who is also an actor. Olivia Hussey's second marriage to Japanese singer/actor, Akira Fuse, also produced one son, Maximilian, who is currently in college.

India was born on October 23, 1993 in Los Angeles, CA, which makes her a little older than her character Ashley. India is 5' 3-1/2" with long dark hair and green eyes, and plump pouty lips to rival Angelina Jolie. Like all teenage girls, she loves to shop and says she tends to pick out things that are classic and elegant, like her stylish mother. She favors green, grey and beige hues and her favorite jeans are 7 for All Mankind (even the shorts are over $150).

The young actress says she is really isn't much like her character Ashley on "The Secret Life," which is undoubtedly a very good thing, since the direction her character appears to be headed in is totally off the wall. Ashley has fallen in love with her sister's baby daddy! The first two seasons revolved around the pregnancy of the older sister, Amy Juergens played by Shailene Woodley. A second unplanned teen pregnancy has been the focal point of the 2010 season. It is not Ashley, Amy's younger sister, who is with child this season. It is Amy's next door neighbor, Adrian (played by Francia Raisa), the former girlfriend of Amy's baby daddy, Ricky.

Ricky got Amy pregnant thereby becoming the show's baby daddy, but from now on we have to call him baby daddy No. 1. No. 2 baby daddy is the character Ben, who was Amy's boyfriend, at least until he informed her that he is the father of Adrian's future progeny. It doesn't seem to matter to Amy that she had a baby by someone else's boyfriend, she expects fidelity. Can it get anymore convoluted?

In "The Secret Life," nothing is really secret so it won't be long before Amy finds out her little sister has a thing for Ricky. So, yeah, it's like - wow! What's next? The writers will surely be hard-pressed to come up with even more convoluted plot twists next season, unless Ricky's mother breaks out of jail and starts turning tricks. As far-fetched as that may sound, they already covered the prostitution angle near the end of the second season when Ben's dad, "The Sausage King," married a hooker!

Whatever they've got in mind, hopefully, they won't write in a pregnancy for India Eisley's role with baby daddy #1. That would be just too icky. ABC Family did give up this hint: "be prepared for her (Ashley) to do something shocking" in the episode "The Sounds of Silence," airing on Monday, July 26, 2010. Oh, the suspense!

Sources: IMDB.com
ABC Family: Secret Life of the American Teenager
Totally Her: India Eisley Interview
ABC Family: Q&A with India Eisley
Star Scoop: India Eisley Interview