Mithila Palkar, who co-starred with Irrfan in Karwaan, talks about sharing screen space with an actor she was in awe of, and remembers being surprised by the late actor’s curious nature
By Mithila Palkar (BOMBAY TIMES; April 26, 2021)

‘HE WOULD ASK ME A LOT OF QUESTIONS ABOUT HOW THE DIGITAL MEDIUM WORKED’
I had my first dialogue of the first schedule of Karwaan with Irrfan sir... that was a daunting task. Like everyone else, I was a huge fan and was always in awe of him. I was extremely intimidated by him, not because he made me feel that way, but out of the respect that I had for him. He was like a film school in himself. It took me a while to come to terms with the fact that I am not his audience, so it was important that I don’t laugh at what he is saying, but react to it. Apart from that, he was just a lot of fun to work with. What struck me was that he was extremely receptive to new things. He would ask me a lot of questions about how the digital medium worked. After Karwaan, he was probably planning to work in something on those lines, so he was really curious to know about this medium, how you get your audience and all of that.

It was amazing that the three of us – DQ (Dulquer Salmaan), Irrfan sir and I – were from different realms of the industry. There was so much to share and learn. The heartening bit was that Irrfan sir was so curious, always wanted to learn more and wouldn’t shy away from asking questions if there was anything that he was unaware of. In fact, he was happily intrigued about how the entertainment space is moving in the digital medium.

‘SOME DAYS, I WOULD GO ON THE SET JUST TO WATCH HIM WORK’
He used to call me Binaca Geetmala because I would keep singing between shots. Even on days I wasn’t required on location, I would go just to watch him work because that was like being at a film school. We all know how amazing he was at his craft.

‘ONE THING I LEARNT FROM IRRFAN SIR WAS TO BE A BETTER LISTENER’
As an actor, something I learnt from Irrfan sir was to be a better listener. When you listen is when you can give something back, and acting is all about give and take. Even in a scene where someone is holding a gun to your head, you have to react to the situation and be aware of your co-actors. It’s an important life lesson, too, but as an actor, it’s essential to listen to others.

‘IT FELT INCOMPLETE TO PROMOTE KARWAAN WITHOUT IRRFAN SIR’
Throughout Karwaan, we three were a unit travelling together, and then, to suddenly promote it without him by our side, felt incomplete (Irrfan was unwell at that time). Dulquer and I would take turns to write to him and tell him that we are missing you; we felt the void even then. It’s hard, even now, to talk about him not being with us anymore.

— As told to Harshada Rege