Delhi: Freida Pinto on more complex women in Indian screen stories

Freida Pinto stood beneath flower-laden bougainvillea in a dark pink dress for one of the photographs in the 2027 Pirelli Calendar, launched in Delhi on Friday.

The actor said Indian storytelling has changed since her debut in the 2008 film *Slumdog Millionaire*, particularly in its portrayal of women. “Being able to see all kinds, not just the duty-bound or the puritanical women, but also the ones with their complexities and not perfect,” she said. “The things that are perfect are boring and are not relatable.”

Pinto is one of nine Indian women featured in the calendar, alongside Aditi Rao Hydari, Anoushka Shankar, Rupi Kaur, Lakshmi Menon and Padma Lakshmi. Photographers Raghu Rai, Avani Rai and Solve Sundsbo worked on the project, which was shot between May and September and includes 36 photographs.

Pinto said Sundsbo’s approach was shaped by conversation and by what those photographed felt comfortable wearing, rather than a fixed idea of India or Indian women.

She will next appear with Siddharth in *Unaccustomed Earth*, an eight-episode Netflix series inspired by Jhumpa Lahiri’s 2008 short-story collection. It is scheduled to premiere on December 17.