Freida Pinto discusses her new movie, The Immortals.

ISSUE: Fall 2011

DEPT: Plugged In

HED: Freida Pinto

STORY: Jimmy Lee

How about starting a new job by getting into bed with Superman? That was Freida Pinto’s predicament, when she began work on the new film Immortals: one of the first scenes shot was a love-making sequence with the soon-to-be Man of Steel, Henry Cavill.

“How can you feel bad for Henry?” said Tarsem Singh, the director of the highly stylized, eye-popping 3D epic, to a screaming crowd at last July’s Comic-Con. Truly, being in Pinto’s presence is a divine experience — especially fitting for a movie with a mythological backdrop. There is, of course, the beauty. But she also handles herself with grace and cunning, complimenting her co-stars while slyly addressing the criticisms coming from India about only making movies in the West.

“What’s amazing about the way my career’s been shaped is that there’s been an immense amount of growth,” said Pinto in July. “When people ask me, ‘Was it amazing working with all these handsome men?’ It is, certainly, and they’re also super-talented. Just sharing screen space with Stephen Dorff; having Mickey Rourke in your film. It’s just amazing to have that experience. It’s just really fast growth, which I wouldn’t have had if I was just sitting in [Mumbai].”

Granted, a swords-and-sandals action flick with Greek gods using Mt. Olympus- enhanced kung fu skills might not be the type of film you’d expect to see her in, but Pinto relished it. “It just gets boring if you stick to just one genre, just one kind of film-making,” said Pinto, who plays Phaedra, an oracle helping Cavill stop a power-mad Rourke from damning mankind. “You want to be challenged. And that’s the whole fun and joy of being an actor: to do everything that’s different.”

And being surrounded by male eye candy wasn’t so bad, either. “It’s very rare that you get to be part of a film where men have to bare it all and the women stay covered,” added Pinto. “It’s a damn good treat for me!”

Details In theaters November 11.

— Jimmy Lee

More stories from Audrey Magazine’s Archives here.

There’s something that draws me into films where the lead actress is not your typical cookie-cutter blonde, or blue-eyed bombshell — not that I have anything against the Cameron Diaz types. However, multi-ethnic actress display an on-screen mystery and feminine charm that is hard for me to ignore.

One actress hard for me to ignore: Frieda Pinto. Following her successful break in Slumdog Millionaire in 2008, she has been blooming ever since, easily becoming the biggest Indian actress in Hollywood today. This November, Pinto will play lead female role in Immortals, set to be released in theatres everywhere on 11-11-11.

Pinto plays the role of the Sybelline Oracle, Phaedra, who aids the fearless hero Theseus (Henry Cavill) in stopping the brutal King Hyperion (Mickey Rourke) in his quest to conquer both mortals and Gods.

Directed by Indian director Tarsem Singh (The Cell, The Fall), Immortals aims to transport audiences in this epic tale of treachery, vengeance and destiny through a stylish and visually spectacular 3D action adventure.

Immortal Trailer

Check out the latest trailer for Immortals, a Greek epic starring Indian actress Freida Pinto (Slumdog Millionaire) — she’s featured in our Fall 2011 issue, out now and available here. Directed by famed Indian director Tarsem Singh (The Cell, The Fall), this 3-D film follows Theseus (played by Henry Cavill), a heroic young villager who rises up against a power-hungry determined to destroy all of ancient Greece in search of a mythical weapon. Pinto plays Phaedra, a priestess who helps Theseus stand up against the king, played by Mickey Rourke. It’s set to release on November 11.