Aditi Rao Hydari made Mumbai her home almost three-and-a-half years back. And the actress, says she has no complaints.

Aditi, who admits that she lives in a dream-world is happy with the way her life has shaped up in the city of dreams. Speaking to CS, Aditi talks about living in Mumbai, her friends and support system:

Mumbai calling
When I came to Mumbai, I thought this place would be scary. I'm an only child and I have a protective family. Even the boarding school set-up was very different. There was no competition; it was an ideal place. Here, people can be nasty and I'm not used to that. But I believe one can survive in places like this. People have been very good to me here and I'm very grateful to them.


Support system
I don't have so many close friends from the industry and I like it that way. I keep that area separate from my personal space. I try not to let the boundaries merge.

I'm quite careful about having people close to me who will tell me the truth. In this industry, we hear a lot of praise on the face. But whether it's compliments or criticism, you have to see where it's coming from. You should take them seriously only if they're coming from people who're really close to you.

Variety is the spice
I don't like to be inconsequential in life, in my personal life and professional. I don't regret doing Delhi 6 or Rockstar, because even though they were small parts, I got a lot of love.

But for me to feel happy and excited, I want to live that journey of the character for a long time. And touchwood, that's the kind of work I'm getting. For a while, people did look at me as this sweet girl next door, and yes I do fit into that easily.

But as an actor, I want to fit myself into different kind of roles. I don't want to be slotted into the sunshine sweet girl category forever. It's lovely but I can do other stuff as well.


Man of my dreams
I like people who work hard, regardless of where they come from. I have made my own life and I have respect for people who do that. So I need to respect the guy I'm with. For me, it's all about staying power and patience.

These are old world qualities. But at the same time, people should live with the times. I like that balance between tradition and modernity. The person has to appeal to me aesthetically as well. From inside and outside, he should be beautiful.