When religion, relationship status and profession made popular TV actors struggle endlessly for a house in Mumbai

There are several actors who have faced the struggle of renting a house in Mumbai. While the city is known to have made careers of many, their problem to find an accomodation continues to remain prevalent. There are several actors who have in the past opened up about not finding a house on rent due to their religion, relationship status or profession. Take a look at the names. (Photo: Instagram)

Russian actress Leysan Karimova, who was seen in Saath Nibhaana Saathiya 2, shared it has been hard for her to find an accomodation in Mumbai for the last seven years that she has been here. She said it was due to her profession and also the fact that she is a foreigner. She told ETimes TV, "Bahut mushkil hai (It's very tough) to find a house in Mumbai. It's difficult for an Indian actor but the struggle is on another level if you are a foreign actress. It's the hardest thing because people here still have this mentality of the 20th century." She added, "It's kind of sad to face such situations but it's up to the owners - his apartment, his choice. During such instances, you feel like a complete outsider. People are judging you because of your skin colour, nationality but not because of your nature. They don't know me but they are already telling me that they are not giving me an apartment because I am a foreigner or because I am an actress. Every country has some stereotypes, we need to kind of stop that." (Photo: Instagram)

The actress has been open about not just her struggles of moving out of her family home but also finding a new abode for herself in Mumbai. Since her parents didn't approve of her aspirations of becoming a model, the actress has been constantly on the move. Elaborating on the problems she faces, she told TOI, "My profession was the biggest issue for most landlords. Being single and having no support from parents was another challenge I faced in finding a house. I had left my house way back in 2010-11. People felt that it would not be right to rent out a place to an actor, who is also single. I expect people to be liberal in their thoughts, but we fail to accept change or growth." (Photo: Instagram)

In 2018 when Zain Imam appeared on Rajeev Khandelwal's show Juzz Baatt, he talked about his struggling days when he was thrown out of one of the rented houses. He shared, "During my audition phase, my landlord threw me out of the house. I desperately looked for a decent place to stay but no one would rent me a place because I was an actor and also because of my religion. There have been times when I've slept in my car for days because I was homeless and my parents still don't know this." (Photo: Instagram)

Kundali Bhagya actor Abhishek Kapur didn't have it easy either. He moved from Delhi to Mumbai and had to hunt for an apartment for months. He told TOI back in Jan, 2020, "As an actor, it’s getting tough to get a good flat in a decent society. I have come to realise that even if the landlord is fine with renting out his/her flat to actors, the society isn’t. Deals break down sooner or later. They point out to our lifestyle that they believe is undisciplined, but don’t non-actors also party and work late hours? Even the price they quote to an actor is quite different from what they charge a regular office-goer." (Photo: Instagram)

In 2018, Yeh Hai Mohabbatein fame Shireen Mirza stated her struggle of finding a home in three words - MUSLIM, BACHELOR, ACTOR. She wrote, "Firstly, Yes I’m an Actor and I do not Smoke or drink and I have no criminal records. So, how can they judge my character on the basis of my profession? Second, I’m a bachelor and when I call brokers they ask me for higher rents for the flats which are available saying Pay extra or u won’t get it since ur a Bachelor. My question is, can't nuisance be created by families too??? Third, I called up another person and they ask me wether I am a Hindu or a Muslim and reverted back with an answer that Muslims are not preferred. They also mentioned that take the flat on ur friend’s name who’s not a Muslim. I mean what’s in a name??? There’s no difference in the blood. Renting or buying a property in the city that never sleeps. Mumbai which prides itself on its cosmopolitan character is divided on the basis of religion, profession and marital status?? I’m shocked to see that Mumbai which has given me so much that I don’t stop praising Mumbai by calling it Aamchi Mumbai still doesn’t have a place for me and so many of us coming from out of town are still struggling with identity crises. With a heavy heart and after many refusals my question is 'Do I belong to this city?'" (Photo: Instagram)

Ishq Par Zor Nahi actress Shagun Sharma moved from Himachal Pradesh to Mumbai shared that even after several years of living in the city, finding a flat has been a challenge for her. She stated it's because of her entertainment industry background. "Most of the housing societies follow this rule of not renting out flats to single people, particularly those who want to live alone. And since I work in the entertainment industry, it only aggravates the problem. I was shooting outdoors and after coming back to Mumbai, I was in search of a flat. Almost 2-3 deals were finalised but in the end, it was called off. I really don’t understand why these housing societies do not allow single people just because it is assumed that they will cause nuisance and chaos." Shagun also added that actors are perceived to be indisciplined and their friendships with the opposite sex are still considered a problem. (Photo: Instagram)

Kundali Bhagya's Prithvi aka Sanjay shared that being a bachelor in a live-in relationship with pets added to the problem of finding a house in Mumbai. Though the actor is married now, he had earlier told us, "It took me a while to find a society that allowed a bachelor. When I got engaged to Poonam and started living-in, I had to hide her when the landlady visited the house as she was against unmarried couples living-in. Finally, we had to move out. While moving into another accommodation, the broker wanted us to lie about our marital status. We somehow managed to live there peacefully for three years because they thought we were married. Problems cropped up when we got two pets. The housing society opposed us and we had to leave. It took us a good four months and almost 80 houses to find a housing society that matched our criteria, and allows pets and a couple in a live-in relationship." (Photo: Instagram)