The star female protagonist of Slumdog Millionaire looks destined for a golden career in Bollywood on the strength of just one film – but has Freida Pinto always wanted to be an actress? “Yes, I have always wanted to get into the acting field,” she explains, “It was always my childhood dream to be in front of the camera and to entertain people. I consider myself very lucky and very blessed. From being a child standing in front of the mirror to actually getting a role written just for me is a huge blessing.”
Mumbai-born Freida accepted the People’s Cadillac Choice Award for Slumdog Millionaire at the Toronto International Film Festival. Although she was born and bred in Mumbai, her family come from Mangalore and she feels a strong affinity with Karnataka. “I’m proud to be an Indian first and a Mangalorean second because my parents are from Mangalore,” she says, “My dad is from Neerude and my mom is from Derabail. I have been there a few times and I love Mangalore.”
Freida will be attending the opening night presentation of Slumdog Millionaire at the Dubai International Film Festival (DIFF) along with Anil Kapoor, who appears as the quiz master in the movie. She also popped up recently with co-star Dev Patel on the Today show. Their chemistry together is so natural that hopefully some enterprising producer is already planning on bringing the jodi back together again onscreen.
