I won’t jump but I’ll stroll: Irrfan on life and cinema

and only when you grow up and become a parent and do the same thing for your child will you realise what your parents had done for you.

The film boasts a talented cast of Kareena Kapoor, Dimple Kapadia, Kiku Sharda, Ranvir Shorey and of course Irrfan Khan and Radhika Madan. This is your first time working with Kareena - what can you tell us about her role in this film?

It’s a dream cast – very different people and very different acting styles – but all very high calibre actors. It was my first time working with Kareena and an absolute joy. She was born an actor. I think that talent just courses through her veins. Her calibre is unrivalled and she is very intuitive so she can fit into pretty much any world of acting; she’s so convincing and effortless that it just made my job so much easier.

We laughed quite a bit at the trailer. Who is the funniest among the cast, do you feel? Who cracked you up on set?

Everyone is funny. There are very quirky people and very quirky characters. But as soon as you put Irrfan Khan and Deepak Dobriyal together, their ‘ jugalbandi’ is magical, and you can see that chemistry. Often they aren’t even looking into each other’s eyes but they just have a vibe going that is difficult to describe.

You waited for a long time for Irrfan Khan to resume shooting for the film. Why did you feel there was no alternative to Irrfan?

Irrfan and I wanted to work together after he’d done The Namesake, we wanted to collaborate but for some reason it never happened. And when this opportunity came up it was a very, very big reason why I took on the task of directing this film.

What can I say about Irrfan? There is no alternative. Unfortunately he fell ill and we couldn’t shoot when we had planned to shoot and the whole project got delayed by a year but honestly I don’t think our producer Dinesh Vijan or myself would have ever made this film if Irrfan was not a part of it.

What was it about this story that made you initially want to get on board as director? What touched or inspired you the most?

I think a lot of things did inspire me about getting on board. One was working with Irrfan, two was when I heard the narration for the first time and I was rolling on the floor laughing, then I was rolling on the floor crying a bit.

It was a very instinctive decision and I do all my films based on instinct. I really don’t like doing something that I’m comfortable doing or that I know how to do – I need uncertainty, I need a challenge, and this had all of that and the icing on the cake was Irrfan.

IRRFAN IS BACK WHERE he belongs - in films. The actor has been away from movies since the release of Karwaan in 2018, the same year he was diagnosed with a neuroendocrine tumour.

He is taking things slow. “I won’t jump but I will stroll,” he said. Through social media, the actor even informed his fans in advance about his absence from the Angrezi Medium promotions, also asking them to “wait” for his return. Irrfan said he is moved by the unending love and support that he has received. “Blessings and adversity go hand-in-hand, I had heard, and I experienced it when it happened to me. The wishes from all over is like a feeling of walking in the rain and you are not carrying any change of clothes and someone you don’t even know takes you inside his umbrella just like that,” he said.

In the past two years, he has been learning more about his family and most importantly, himself. “I have come to know Irrfan, Sutapa (his wife), Babil and Ayaan (his sons) very very closely and I would much rather be busy decoding these surprises of life,” he said.

Getting back to work wasn’t easy for the actor.

“I hadn’t spoken Marwari for a long time though I am from Rajasthan. Day one was... What was it like... How do you explain? It was an inexplicable feeling. I forgot the craft and I was all heart, whether it has worked or not, you’ll need to say,” he said.

In Angrezi Medium, Irrfan plays a sweet-shop owner who makes desperate attempts to fulfil his daughter’s dream of studying in a London college. Off-screen too, the actor said, he can go to any lengths for his children but he wouldn’t fight their fight for them. “Emotionally, I can go any length for my kids but I won’t run for them as it’s their race.” PTI