Actor Irrfan succumbed to his illness in the summer of 2020 on April 29. Today, on the actor’s birth anniversary, his friends, family and close associates from the film industry are reminiscing the lovely times and memories shared with one of Indian cinema’s finest actors. Tigmanshu Dhulia, who had a special bond with the actor and had directed him in films like Haasil (2003) and Paan Singh Tomar (2012), talking to BT on an emotional note, says, “Both Irrfan and I don’t remember birthdays easily. Naa usko yaad rehta tha na mujhe. I don’t know how I feel and how I should feel right now. It’s weird. Aaj Irrfan ka birthday hai and he is not here. It feels strange that I’ll never be able to wish him again. There is a void that I realise will now be a part of our lives for as long as we live. The work we did together continues to have a life of its own. I feel so happy that we worked together on some of his most memorable works. It’s like a huge benchmark that he created and I measure everyone’s performance with that. I can never say goodbye to Irrfan.”

Irrfan and Tigmanshu met at the National School of Drama (NSD), where the actor was Tigmanshu’s senior. “I knew a boy studying at NSD and he had called me in to see a play, Fujiyama. That’s the first time I saw Irrfan and Sutapa Sikdar in action and was impressed with all that I saw. Since there weren’t too many students in the institution at that time, I had a chance to acquaint myself with Irrfan, who was a shy and introverted guy. He lived in one of the smallest rooms in one of those corners of the hostel building and wouldn’t share it with anyone. Sutapa was his girlfriend then. She was into direction and he was into acting. When I saw them display their craft, I was blown away with what I saw. Towards the end of his term in the institution, we had started bonding over our love for certain actors, cinema and storytellers,” recalls the filmmaker.

Tigmanshu and Irrfan worked together for the first time on a TV show called Hum Bambai Nahi Jayenge. After assisting Shekhar Kapur, Tigmanshu found himself in the director’s chair for this show. “A channel was being launched in 1993. This show was a collaboration, which included Irrfan, Saurabh Shukla and Manoj Bajpayee among others. That was the first time I directed Irrfan. He played a drama school teacher and the show was loosely based on the life we had seen at the NSD,” recalls the filmmaker, whose last directorial with Irrfan was Saheb Biwi Aur Gangster Returns (2013). “Irrfan and I were talking about doing something together but he had a string of commitments to fulfil. By the time those were completed, Irrfan was diagnosed with the ailment. I guess what we had spoken about will stay deep inside my heart for as long as I breathe,” says Tigmanshu.