They are reigning high as Tollywood leads and they are all women. But that’s not the only thing that Samantha, Rakul Preet Singh, Anushka Shetty, Charmme, Raashi Khanna and Lavanya Tripathi have in common. Hailing from all over India, these actresses have now made Hyderabad their home, where they own properties and live with their families. It was Anushka who first settled here, a long time ago, and the others followed suit.
“When I initially moved to the city, I had to stay in hotels for almost two years. I was fed up of that life and it was then that I decided that I wanted a home in the city, so I shifted base permanently,” says actress Rakul Preet Singh. She further adds, “I find a lot of peace here, I get my space and the city also gives me my work. My brother is currently staying with me and now I feel like I have my own home. Now, I’m looking forward to my parents staying with me.”
Not just Rakul Preet, but several others like Raashi Khanna have also made Hyderabad their home. For Raashi, too, staying in hotels was what made things difficult. “I have been working in this city for so long, so I did not want to live like a visitor here,” she reasons. “More than that, I missed my family. So I decided to make Hyderabad my home. And now, my parents visit me and it gives me a lot of peace when I go home after work,” adds Raashi.
Samantha, too, purchased a house here a few years back and has settled here, though she still has her home in Chennai. While Charmme has owned a house in the city for a long time, with her parents by her side, she seems to have become a full bred Hyderabadi now.
The latest entrant, Lavanya Tripathi from Uttarakhand, is now looking forward to purchasing a home in the city. “Most of my work is based in Hyderabad, so it makes sense that I own a house here. Another reason I want a home here is because, I want to have my own kitchen so that I can cook, since I hate food from hotels. It also helps that my best friend lives here and I love this city a lot,” she adds.
However, the actress owns a house in Mumbai, which she says she cannot give up as she studies there and has lived there for a long time. But, she maintains that she likes both the cities equally.
And then there are those who can’t dream of leaving the city. “When I won’t have work, say, after seven or eight years, or when I retire, I can’t imagine leaving Hyderabad, because I love this city that much,” admits Rakul Preet Singh. It’s rather interesting to note that, even though these actresses are from different states of India, all of them can also speak the local language well.
