HELLO! India Exclusive: Aditi Rao Hydari from Cannes 2026 on her evolving relationship with beauty and discovering her self-worth

Having attended the world-famous Cannes Film Festival for years now; with three as L'Oréal Paris’ brand ambassador from India (and the latest appearance unfolding as we speak), it’s fair to call Aditi Rao Hydari a Cannes regular. The years of sporting vivaciously-hued gowns with the country’s most covetable glass skin glow on the red carpet has turned the Indian film star into a bonafide style icon at the South of France’s most notable cinematic event; one whose choices exude a strong sense of strength and self-worth that’s refined by grace and poise. In an exclusive interview with HELLO! India’s Associate Editor, Dayle Pereira-Alemao, HELLO! India goes behind the camera flashes and glitzy looks to trace Aditi Rao Hydari’s trajectory in fashion; and in life really, the beginnings of her relationship with beauty and more.

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“When you lead with kindness, clarity becomes an anchor”

With the virtue of self-worth being a cornerstone of her L'Oréal Paris partnership, Aditi spoke of how her journey to discover it within herself all began. “Growing up, I was surrounded by an abundance of love. I always felt protected, yet equally free; free to explore, to question, to be endlessly curious. That foundation shaped me deeply.” Her move into the film industry was a reality check for the actress. “Then came 2011, and with it, Mumbai. I stepped into an industry I knew nothing about, armed only with big dreams and a heart full of hope. It was, to put it simply, a tremendous learning curve. I arrived with the same openness I had always known that belief that the world would receive you the way the people who love you do. Perhaps it was my dreamy nature. Perhaps it was the protection I believed I’d always have.  Either way, the first couple of years carried their own kind of naivety. And then, the noise crept in. The doubts. The chaos. The well-meaning voices pulling you in every direction at once. I stumbled but I've come to understand that stumbling is simply part of the process. Something instinctive in me always brought me back on my feet.” 

That taught her one of life’s key lessons: learning to trust yourself. “Beyond the love and validation of the people around you, there is something far more powerful in trusting your own gut, your own instincts in knowing that when your intentions are clean, and certain. When you lead with kindness and a genuine love for your craft, that clarity becomes an anchor. For me, self-worth is the ability to find stillness within the chaos, to hear the music through the noise, and to seek out the light in the dark and the most difficult situations. It is an unwavering belief in positivity, the curiosity of possibility, in warmth, in growth, in the quiet power of staying true to yourself, no matter what chaos surrounds you,” she notes.

“Nothing makes me feel more beautiful than making someone's day”

It’s almost imperative to ask how a woman as perfectly beautiful as Aditi, who has royal lineage by way of belonging to two illustrious aristocratic families from the erstwhile Hyderabad state, views beauty from her perspective. On her relationship with beauty through the years, she says, “I find it impossible to speak about beauty without returning, always, to where I came from. Growing up, I was immersed in it with beautiful textiles, beautiful people, beautiful souls. Music, dance, artistry, books. There was an exquisiteness to my world that I perhaps took for granted, surrounded as I was by people who never settled for anything less than giving their very best not just in their craft, but also in the way they showed up as human beings. Learning by example, in that way, was one of the greatest gifts of my childhood.”

Planting her feet in Mumbai broadened her vision. “Coming to Mumbai, encountering such a vivid spectrum of human beings every single day expanded something in me. My mind and heart expanded. And somewhere along the way, my relationship with beauty also transformed.” Beyond just physical appearance, beauty to her is in thought and deed. “Today, beauty to me is a feeling. It isn't simply what something looks like; rather it's what it makes you feel. Nothing makes me feel more beautiful than making someone's day. A smile or a moment of generosity, genuine empathy. Pausing to truly see and appreciate the people who quietly make your life easier and the ones who rarely get acknowledged. It's the small things, often the intangible ones, that feel the most beautiful to me now. That, I think, is the kind of beauty that lasts,” adds Aditi.

“If I want to dress up, I do. If I don't, I don’t”

For many, makeup is a medium. Aditi however, uses her makeup as an extension of feeling comfortable in her own skin. Like her personal style that’s sophisticated yet understated in every appearance she makes; whether in Mumbai, Hyderabad or France; her makeup choices don’t fall far from the same tree. “The was pressure around how a heroine should look, behave [and] dress. Heels, more makeup, big hair. But even back in 2011, I wanted to be barefaced. I wanted to wear my sneakers, throw my hair up in a top knot. I always felt like I could play around for a cover or a film, but in my everyday life why couldn't I just be myself. That was a learning in itself. There's a place and time for everything, and understanding that has actually expanded the way I think. I don't struggle with it so much anymore. I'm very comfortable in my bare face, in my chappals or sneakers. At the airport, I'm in a sweatshirt and jeans. If I want to dress up, I do. If I don't, I don't. And with makeup, I've always been a minimal girly. That's just who I am so I feel like my best self. Bare skin, minimal everything is my go to for everyday life and I genuinely love that,” she emphasises.

On her Cannes Film Festival appearances at its ongoing 2026 edition, she shares what is going on behind her look. “I'm a lip stain fan—I love a good lip and cheek stain! The L'Oréal Paris Hyaluron Tint Lip Stain serum is my go-to and is delicious, so that one gets a lot of use. Then there’s the Infallible Tinted Serum Foundation—I love how bare and sheer it is; It looks like skin but more polished  There's a fun story with that one. At Cannes last year, as my team was arriving later, I had to put my look together myself. I had a L'Oréal kit with me so I used  the Infallible Tinted Serum Foundation and with the ‘Breakfast In Bed’ lip colour and created the look entirely on my own. This was the look with the pink checked shirt and the corduroy pants. And the Elnett hairspray? It’s a classic for a reason,” she says and adds, “I’m a proud L'Oréal girl and whatever the look is [this season], I'll be flaunting L'Oréal on that red carpet!”

“This is what dreams are made of”

As a style maven and silver screen star that millions across adore and wish they could be, Aditi shares her pearls of wisdom with HELLO! India to inspire those who want to walk in her footsteps. She advises, “The one question I'd ask anyone entering the film industry is simply: why do you want to be here? Is it cinema? Is it that fire in your belly to work with certain directors, to surrender yourself to their vision, to breathe life into something larger than yourself? Is it the desire to leave behind a cinematic legacy through the work you do? Or is it the fame, the excitement, the money, the adulation, the access? None of those reasons is bigger or smaller than the other. Any of them can drive a person to succeed, to excel, to push themselves. But you need to know your answer and it needs to be honest.”

She delves into her own journey into the film industry, adding, “For me, that penny dropped on the set of a Mani Ratnam film. I became an actor because I wanted to be a Mani Ratnam heroine and that was my dream as a little girl. And to actually see that manifest, to walk onto that set and be directed by him was to feel what cinema is. This is what dreams are made of! Something just clicked. I understood, why I was there. Maybe I can’t verbalise it, but I felt it.” Digging deeper into the intention behind her actions, Aditi says, “What I realised was quite simple: I need to feel like a child on a set. Nurtured and challenged at the same time. Everyone needs to find theirs. Because once you do and once your intention is clear and your reason is truthful, that clarity becomes the most empowering feeling, and no one can mess with that. It becomes your fuel. Not just for your career, but for your life. So that's what I'd wish for people to find for themselves. Not just those entering this industry, but anyone stepping toward something they want—that clarity. Find it, hold onto it, and let it lead you.”

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