She might be a popular "Pretty Little Liars" star but Shay Mitchell revealed that life wasn't always charming for her. When she was in Canada, she was bullied for her looks that she even tried to fit in by changing herself.

In an interview with Yahoo! Style, "Pretty Little Liars" star Shay Mitchell that several girls from her school made it clear that they never like her. Since she wanted to avoid her bullies, the 27-year-old actress would opt to eat her lunch inside the bathroom.

"I knew back then that those girls were dealing with their own issues," she said. Mitchell owes her distinct looks to her Filipino mother and Irish-Scottish father.

Referring to her color, she said that "it was the first thing people noticed."

"They'd say, 'Are you the daughter of my nanny?' I hated being asked who I was, and all my friends had blond hair and blue eyes," she said. In an attempt to fit in, Mitchell dyed her hair, wore varying colors of contact lenses, and even avoided going out too much to make her skin pale.

Looking back, Mitchell felt remorseful for "that girl wanted to be something she wasn't." When she started to embrace her unique looks, blessings came her way when she modeled in Thailand and Hong Kong. In a previous interview, she said that her ethnic looks made her stand out in those projects.

"I'm such a big promoter (now) of embracing what you're born with," she told Philippines Star last year adding that being part Filipino makes her "a little bit more unique."