Freida Pinto: 'I get cast for my acting'

Freida Pinto has denied that she is chosen for Hollywood films because she is "exotic".

The actress can currently be seen in Rise of the Planet of the Apes opposite Andy Serkis and James Franco.

Pinto told DNA: "Except the Woody Allen film [You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger], which was about people with diverse ethnic backgrounds, other directors don't take me on because they feel there's an exotic value attached to me being Indian, but because I fit the role.

"I want to balance out the big budget Hollywood blockbusters with some smart independent films. I just wanted to become an actor."

She added: "As an actor, you don't have to limit yourself to a particular culture or ethnicity. I want to spread my tentacles everywhere and am ready for a film offer from any part of the world."

Pinto has previously been accused of shunning Indian films in favour of Hollywood projects, though the paper claims that she has signed on to an undisclosed Bollywood movie.

The Slumdog Millionaire star recently admitted that she was initially starstruck in Hollywood.

Watch Digital Spy's exclusive interview with Rise of the Planet of the Apes director Rupert Wyatt below: