Irrfan Khan: The magician who never ran out of tricks

Even as the reports of coronavirus hogs the limelight day in and day out, the news of not-so-sudden passing away of Irrfan Khan, at once shifted the nation’s attention to the loss of veteran actor. Few actors could meet his agility combined with verve when it comes to fusing words and action in perfect synergy. He stood out of the rest and never ran out of tricks when it comes to churning out memorable roles.

Hyderabad: What made Irrfan Khan (1967-2020) a prolific actor? His rigorous efforts to not get bored himself by his film choices let alone the audience or as Irrfan once confessed that he lacked the ability to fit into any kind of system which allowed him to explore cinema of all kinds right from indie to commercial to Hollywood. Otherwise, which actor could have Ang Lee's Life of Pi and Anees Bazmee's Thank You hitting the screens in the same year (2011)!

Irrfan was a magician to say the least when it comes to pouring life into what has been on the paper. The National Award-winning actor possesses a strong screen presence where his expressive eyes would do the talking. That is why when in a scene from his last outing Angrezi Medium he tells Radhika Madan, his on-screen daughter, "thari maa bolti thi aap ki ankhiya badi nashili hai," it felt so natural and once again reminded us of his unparalleled asset that any actor would envy of.

For more than two decades, the Hindi film industry is ruled by the holy trinity of the three Khans — Aamir-Salman-Shah Rukh. However, critics believed Irrfan was above the cut when it comes to acting prowess. Even Kareena Kapoor Khan, who has worked with all the Khans had said that her Angrezi Medium co-star is "the biggest Khan."

Interestingly, any aspiring actor would wish to bear the famous lucky surname ‘Khan’, while Irrfan had decided to drop it. He cited the reason that he doesn’t want his surname to act as a deterrent for movies. The man whose words and action were in perfect synergy had also turned down film offers that had a religious or cultural canvas. Kurbaan, Midnight’s Children Black Friday and Mira Nair’s Reluctant Fundamentalist were few of them.

The Padma Shri awardee believed: “Religion is a personal matter and should not be used as a base for work or anything else.”

With projects like Paan Singh Tomar, Piku, Talvar, The Lunchbox, Maqbool, and 7 Khoon Maaf, Irrfan carved a name for himself in Hindi cinema. He gradually established himself in the West too. But there was a time in the 1990s when Irrfan was contemplating leaving the glitzy world of showbiz.

READ |Bollywood mourns the loss of an extraordinary gem Irrfan Khan

British filmmaker Asif Kapadia's The Warrior in 2001 gave a much-needed fillip to his career and exposure to the West that opened new vistas. From there on, there was no looking back.

He has also been associated with foreign films like The Namesake, A Mighty Heart, Slumdog Millionaire, The Amazing Spider-Man, Inferno and Jurassic World.

When in 2018 Irrfan revealed that he is suffering from a "rare disease", millions of hearts sank. Irrfan had been ailing ever since he was diagnosed with neuroendocrine tumour, and was undergoing medical attention for the same. He even went abroad for treatment.

The hope, however, was alive as even though at the long intervals kept sending positive notes to his fans through social media. When he returned to shoot Angrezi Medium, it pumped up the optimism further. The industry and media, unaware of the reality, were eagerly waiting to see Irrfan during the film's promotions.

Ironically, life had come full circle for Irrfan with Angrezi Medium. The actor shot for his swansong in Udaipur, 394 km away from his birthplace, Jaipur.

READ| Anupam breaks down praying for Irrfan's 'departed soul'

Unfortunately, in his last days, Irrfan was mourning the loss of his mother. The actor's mother Saeeda Begum breathed her last on Saturday in Jaipur where she used to stay. However, owing to the ongoing lockdown, the actor could not physically attend his mother's last rites and reportedly paid his last respect through video conferencing.

Till his last, he fought – fought it like a fighter the many battles that life had to throw at him.

What one would say to the man of few words, who had the ability to convey with the tiniest gestures we wish you could fathom the sorrow in our eyes – glued on a beautiful collage of your fond memories!

Irrfan was indeed a magician who never ran out of tricks when it comes to churning out memorable roles.

On Tuesday, Irrfan was admitted to Mumbai's Kokilaben Dhirubhai Ambani hospital with a colon infection. Although a statement issued by his spokesperson in the early hours of Wednesday had dispelled rumours about his health condition, the confirmation of his demise came later in the day.

No words can express the amount of profound loss that Irrfan's demise weighs on Hindi cinema. As Amitabh Bachchan rightly said, you "left us too soon", Irrfan Khan!

-- By Minal Dodia