Sudden illness claims Slumdog movie star
Irrfan Khan, a veteran character actor in Bollywood movies and one of India’s best-known exports to Hollywood, has died. He was 54. Khan played the police inspector in Slumdog Millionaire and the park executive Masrani in Jurassic World.
He also appeared in The Amazing Spider-Man and the adventure fantasy Life of Pi.
Khan died after being admitted to Mumbai’s Kokilaben Dhirubhai Ambani hospital with a colon infection.
“Irrfan was a strong soul, someone who fought ’til the very end and always inspired everyone who came close to him,” the actor’s team said.
Khan was born Saahabzaade Irfan Ali Khan in Jaipur in 1966, the son of a tyre seller, and went to drama school after failing as a cricketer. He struggled to make headway in the film industry, despite being cast in a small role as a letter writer in Mira Nair’s 1988 Salaam Bombay!. To his frustration he only managed to find regular work in low-grade TV soap operas.
Khan made his screen debut in the Academy Award-nominated Salaam Bombay!, a tale of Mumbai’s street children. He worked with directors Nair, Wes Anderson and Ang Lee.
Khan in 2018 was diagnosed with a rare neuroendocrine cancer and underwent months of treatment in the United Kingdom.
“I trust, I have surrendered,” he wrote in a heartfelt note after he broke the news of his cancer.
Khan won a number of film awards in India, including a 2012 Indian National Film Award for best actor for his performance in Paan Singh Tomar,
a compelling tale of a seven-time national champion athlete who quit India’s armed forces to rule the Chambal ravines in central India.
Khan received an Independent Spirit Award for supporting actor in 2006 for the Indian-American drama
The Namesake and a viewers’ choice award at the Cannes festival 2013 for his role in the Indian romantic drama
The Lunchbox.
Khan also starred in the Hamletinspired Haider, a Bollywood film set in militarised Himalayan Kashmir.
Tributes came from Bollywood, including from fellow actor Amitabh Bachchan, who said Khan was an “incredible talent” and “a prolific contributor to the world of cinema”.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted that “Khan’s demise is a loss to the world of cinema and theatre”.
India cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar took to Twitter to express his shock over the actor’s demise.
“Sad to hear the news of #IrrfanKhan passing away. He was one of my favorites & I’ve watched almost all his films, the last one being Angrezi Medium. Acting came so effortlessly to him, he was just terrific. May his soul Rest In Peace. Condolences to his loved ones,” he wrote.
Former India batsman Yuvraj Singh also took to Twitter to express his condolences. “I know the journey, I know the pain and I know he fought ’til the end. Some are lucky to survive, some don’t. I’m sure you are in a better place now Irrfan Khan. My condolence to your family. May his soul RIP.”
In an interview in 2018, Khan said: “I’ve seen life from a completely different angle. You sit down and you see the other side and that’s fascinating. I’m engaged on a journey.”
Khan’s last Bollywood movie, Angrezi Medium, a sequel to one of his biggest hits, Hindi Medium , was released before India went into a lockdown in March.
He is survived by his wife, television writer and producer Sutapa Sikdar, and sons Babil and Ayan.