When somebody else calls you exotic, exotic is a box - it's the stereotype of snake charmers and face jewelry. You're just that stereotype. But I don't get offended anymore. I used to get offended by things that were said to me, or how I was seen. Now I educate. If I get pissed off, I'll educate in a sassy way. Other times I educate in a Gandhi-like way. You know - I have my moods.

There are so many incredible women on TV right now. Viola Davis, Kerry Washington, Ellen Pompeo. These are really incredible female leads that are on network TV. Hopefully, with what I do, and the generation of actors I'm working with, that'll make the lives of other girls coming in after me even better. I hope to aim for that.

I love what I do, and for me, acting can be anything. It could be in America. It could be in India. It could be in England. It could be anything. As long as it's an interesting part and an interesting opportunity, I would love to do it.

I don't think a lot of people in America understand what Indians are. And that's our fault, a little. We tend to forget our roots a bit. As kids we think, If I'm too Indian, I'll be put in a box, and people will think of me as different. They'll think I'm weird, because I eat Indian food or my name is difficult to pronounce.

I think it's great to be flawed. I am hugely flawed, and I like it this way. That's the fun of life. You fall, get up, make mistakes, learn from them, be human and be you.

I don't like guys who are conventional. I'm an achiever; he has to be an achiever. I admire drive, I admire ambition. I like a guy who keeps my on my toes.

I used to get upset with the word Bollywood, and what it means in the West. The stereotype of us being dancing, singing, puppet showgirls. Indians are nearly one fifth of the world's population; we have one of the most prolific film industries in the world. When people used to ask me about it, or replicate what they think is Bollywood dancing, thinking that they're being funny, I used to get offended. But now I show them the stuff we do.