People will be pleasantly surprised with my acting: Irfan
Known for his swing bowling and charismatic looks, former Indian cricketer Irfan Pathan has donned many roles. And after his successful career as a left-arm seamer, Pathan will soon make his acting debut with a Tamil film with actor Vikram in the lead.
He says, “I never thought of becoming an actor. Director Ajay Gnanamuthu contacted me, and was keen on me taking up the role. I asked him why was he keen on casting me. He explained his point of view and after narrating the story, I gave it a lot of thought and decided to give it a shot. It’s a new venture and I’m looking forward to it.”
Pathan says he consulted his family before taking the role. “There was a lot of discussion that happened at home. I also told the director about certain things I’m not comfortable doing on screen. He respected my decision. Since I was delivering the dialogues in Tamil, I focused on the pronunciation,” he says.
Disclosing more about his role, the former cricketer says, “I play an Interpol officer. It’s an interesting character. Initially, it was a bit tough, but the director and the entire team was there to guide me. And Gnanamuthu didn’t leave any loose ends, and asked me to give retakes till the time he was satisfied. Vikram is a big star and he gave in a lot of inputs, which helped.”
Pathan believes that he has given his best in the film. The 35-year-old says, “People will be pleasantly surprised when they see me as an actor. I’ll be speaking Tamil which will also be something new for my fans. After every shot, I’d check the monitor and see if I can do it better.” Pathan, who made a fleeting appearance in Mujhse Shaadi Karoge (2004) and participated in Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa Reloaded reveals that he was offered modelling assignments even before he was selected for the Indian team. “It was around 2002, when I was playing for India A. I was in Bengaluru when Prasad Bidapa (a Bengalurubased fashion stylist) asked if I would be interested in modelling. I denied the offer as I wanted to play cricket. But I guess it was destined,” he says.
Earlier this year, Pathan announced his retirement. He says, “The one thing that any cricketer misses is the dressing room. It’s interesting to bond with Viru paaji (Virender Sehwag) and Yuvraj Singh.