Netflix Taps 'The Lunchbox' Director and Freida Pinto for Jhumpa Lahiri's 'Unaccustomed Earth'

We had reported that earlier that Netflix is working on a series adaptation of Jhumpa Lahiri's 'Unaccustomed Earth', the short story collection of the esteemed British author of Indian origin, with The Pitt creator John Wells at its helm as writer, showrunner and executive producer. 

As per Netflix, Ritesh Batra ("The Lunchbox") will direct and executive produce the first two episodes. Freida Pinto will play the character Parul Chaudhary in the 8-episode series.

 

Sharing the announcement on her Instagram, Pinto wrote, "An absolute honour to be part of this incredible and formidable production!"

 

Netflix's official logline for the adaptation, which has Lahiri attached as one of the executive producers, describes it as "an epic, soapy drama about a tight-knit immigrant community navigating love, desire, and belonging. When a star-crossed romance between a devoted wife and her long-lost love comes to light, a scandalous affair is born, and new battle lines are drawn in the elite, insular Indian American community of Cambridge, Massachusetts. Rich with passion and unforgettable characters, Unaccustomed Earth is an intimate, nuanced look inside a tight-knit community."

 

Wells is backing the project through his John Wells Productions jointly with Warner Bros. Television. Also involved in the team are writer and executive producer Madhuri Shekar (of Netflix's 3 Body Problem) and Nisha Ganatra ("Freakier Friday", "Late Night"), will serve as co-executive producer.

 

It's worth noting that Wells previously partnered with Netflix and Warner Bros. Television for the widely praised limited series Maid (starring Margaret Qualley) and an in-production miniseries titled Untamed.

 

A Pulitzer Prize-winning author (for the short story collection Interpreter of Maladies), Lahiri is also known for The Namesake, which got a film adaptation directed by Mira Nair and starring Irrfan Khan and Tabu.

 

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