Irrfan Khan passed away after a two year battle with neuroendocrine tumour. The actor was just 53 years old. Irrfan Khan started his career in television in the mid 80's and worked mostly in television through the 90's and came to the notice of the Hindi film industry in the early 2000's. It was the work in thrillers from the Bhatt camp like KASOOR, GUNAAH and FOOTPATH which led the way to more assignments in the Hindi film industry.

The biggest achievement of Irrfan Khan as an actor was that he is the only actor from India to make a mark in mainstream Hollywood cinema with films like LIFE OF PI and JURASSIC WORLD. There have been many that have tried (male and female) but only Irrfan Khan manage to succeed.

The popular films of Irrfan Khan in Hindi cinema were PIKU, HINDI MEDIUM and GUNDAY. It is a coincidence that the last film to release before the lockdown was an Irrfan Khan starrer, ANGREZI MEDIUM. This film remained in theatres for four days before the entire country went into lockdown.

Amit Karn (MID-DAY; June 26, 2016)

Truth is stranger than fiction. Bollywood films are facing tough competition from Hollywood films on their own soil. Several filmmakers, like Mukesh Bhatt, have sounded off an alarm to save Hindi films from dwindling box office collections. It is well known that Hollywood filmmakers and studios work in a monopolistic way. They have realised the importance of the Indian market and sometimes, even release their films here first.

Big bite
The collections of Hollywood films have multiplied in India in the last five years. Initially, they would only play at 400 screens across the country, now it is over 1,500 screens. For instance, Jurassic World (2015) released in over 65 countries worldwide. In the US, it released in only 440 theatres, while overseas, it was running in over 800 theatres. In India alone, it was released in 2,300 screens across the country. No big Bollywood films released a week earlier or a week after after its release. Mohit Suri’s Hamari Adhuri Kahani, starring Vidya Balan and Emraan Hashmi, took the risk, but paid the price at the box office. In another instance, in 2015, Fast & Furious 7 got double the screens that Detective Byomkesh Bakshy got. While Fast and Furious 7 got 2,800 screens, Byomkesh got 1, 240.

Says Vikram Bhatt, “They have aced the genres of animation, sci-fi and action, due to which the multiplexes favour them. This is not a wrong move as they are raking in the moolah. But the biggest impact is on small budget films. During the festive season, it is difficult to procure release dates as the Khans and Kapoors dominate. During the summer months, they release animation films to target the vacation crowd. The IPL takes care of the rest as filmmakers do not want to release their films during the cricket season. So where do the small filmmakers go?”

Good run
Saurabh Saxena, COO, Carnival Cinemas says, “Our earnings from Bollywood and Hollywood are the same. But what is happening is that Hollywood films are now running successfully even in the second week. For instance, The Jungle Book did phenomenal business in the second and third week. It was a similar situation during Captain America and The X Men.”

Target audience
According to film distributors, Hollywood is making a planned effort to target India. They are releasing their films here before the US. The Jungle Book released worldwide on April 15, but in India it hit theatres on April 8. Commenting about the scenario, Amitabh Bachchan says, “I had started ABCL in 1995 and at that time I had said that we need to look after our production houses. The Americans are coming. In 1990, when I was in New York, I met a Hollywood studio head. This man, in a mere 30 minutes, told me the history of the Hindi film industry. I was shocked. He told me to look after our house as the Yankees are coming.”

Irrfan, who has seen the best of Hollywood and Bollywood, says, “Earlier, we didn’t had to worry about such a situation. If we do not make films that are inspired by our roots, we will not be able to take them on.” Adds Vijay Singh, CEO, Fox Star India, “It is the survival of the fittest. In the marketplace, only what is really good, sells. For example, Neerja and Kapoor And Sons were our films and ran successfully in theatres for several weeks. The audience has the right to choose what is best for them. If we enforce protective policies, we are stealing the rights of the audience to choose what they want to watch.”

Chinese model
Filmmaker Mukesh Bhatt counters Vijay Singh’s logic. The veteran says, “In China, only 35 foreign films can release in a year. This is a government directive. This is the case even though there are 50,000 screens. We have only 8,000 screens. Healthy competition will happen when there is a fight among equal talents. Their films have a budget of 500 to 1,200 crores, but our films have a meagre budget of barely 50-60 crore. How can we match their quality? Unfortunately, the government is not taking action on this.”

Cine historian Jai Prakash Chouksey says, “In Bollywood, there is no unity among filmmakers. Big stars get their dates and number of screens. The small budget filmmakers are fighting among themselves to get an audience. The late Indira Gandhi had introduced a bill to limit Hollywood releases. She had the foresight and vision even in the 1970s. But since then, no other government bothered to do anything.”

Priya Gupta (BOMBAY TIMES; June 17, 2015)

Jurassic World is one hell of a dhamaka! The tremendous amount of tension created in the first half is worth experiencing. The second half too has its moments but at a few places, the film needlessly drags. The script is watertight, VFX (as expected) is out of the world and most importantly, the characters are well etched and their association with each other is very interesting. The relationship of Zach and Gary, Zach and Garry with Claire, and Claire and Owen keep the viewers engaged despite the towering presence of the various dinosaurs. Chris Pratt kills it with a stupendous performance. Bryce Dallas Howard is damn good and glad to see that she too has some of her heroic moments. Ty Simpkins and Nick Robinson are decent. Omar Sy (who has been loved by one and all in The Intouchables) has a very small role sadly. Irrfan Khan looks quite dashing and leaves a mark in a supporting role. This is one is a full-on entertainer and a must watch for people like us who never got a chance to catch Jurassic Park in theatres!

My rating - **** out of 5! 

Irrfan on being compared to Anil Kapoor, his Hollywood projects and his recently released Piku
Sneha Mahadevan (DNA; May 13, 2015)


“I have always been looking for romantic roles, but I chose the best available to me. In fact, I even did Lunchbox because it was a love story in its own way. But I was sure I didn’t want to do the usual, run-of-the-mill love stories where there is nothing new to explore. Piku allowed me to do that,” says Irrfan.

Was it a conscious attempt to break away from his serious image? “I don’t know. I guess I need to do a few more roles to be accepted like that. Ever since my first film, I’ve been wanting to destroy whatever I have done. I don’t like to be slotted and don’t want to be known as a romantic hero either,” he says.

Next, he will shoot for the movie adaptation of Dan Brown’s Inferno, co-starring Tom Hanks. He recently flew to Budapest for look-test. He elaborates, “It was wonderful to meet everyone on set. It was a look-test in terms of what costumes to wear, whether or not I should grow a beard or if I should keep my hair long or short. I am still waiting to hear back from them about my final look out of the four-five shortlisted. I will start shooting for it after June. The shooting will take place all over Europe — Turkey, Budapest and Florence.”

His next Hollywood project is Jurassic World. “I was just out of drama school when Jurassic Park came out. I must have imagined myself acting in any other film, but definitely not this one. I had seen the first part and loved it. I still clearly remember the scene where the dinosaurs are shown for the first time,” he reminisces.
He paved the way for Indian actors in Hollywood, Like his co-star from Slumdog Millionaire Anil Kapoor and the comparisons drawn between them. “I don’t think anyone compares us anymore. That happened when Slumdog came out, so I don’t have any take on it. Anyway, how can you compare me to someone who has been around for so much more longer than I have? It’s absolutely pointless,” he retorts.

Irrfan Khan turned down lead roles to avoid repetition, choosing instead to experiment with Harry Sims, The Provost of Ron Howard's Inferno
Roshmilla Bhattacharya (MUMBAI MIRROR; February 19, 2015)

Roshmilla Bhattacharya (MUMBAI MIRROR; May 15, 2014)

Hours before he flew out to Hawaii to film Jurassic World in which he plays a business tycoon and owner of the dino park, an excited Irrfan Khan had told Mirror that he was looking forward to interacting with the pre-historic creatures.

"There's a huge, insatiable curiosity about dinosaurs in the US. There is an attempt to provide constant fodder for the imagination and bringing that reality on to the screen," he had pointed out.

Back from the shoot, the actor refuses to reveal details about the dinos but is obviously impressed with the park that has been created on the island of Oahu in Hawaii. "It's a huge set and a big unit. The first day that I reported for the shoot, the whole street was filled with trucks. They had blocked a part of the island, mostly jungles and mountains," he informs, adding that certain portions were also shot in Maui island.

He's all praise for director and cowriter Collin Trevorrow. "Even though he has just one film behind him, Safety Not Guranteed, he was very chilled out and in control," he says, excited to have worked with director Ron Howards's daughter Bryce Dallas Howard known for her performances in films like The Help, As You Like It, Spider-Man 3 and Twilight Salvation. "She's very good. When I go back in July I am looking forward to working with other actors like Chris Pratt," he says.

While working in a big Hollywood franchise gives a high, Irrfan is equally excited about Revolver Rani director, Sai Kabir's next film, Divine Lovers.  "It's a fantastic love story co-starring Kangana (Ranaut)," says the actor who's been getting rave reviews the world over for his performance as a mature lover in The Lunchbox.

"I became an actor to explore love and the love in my heart won't die till I die. It has taken me a long time to make my presence felt as a romantic lead. I'm glad for the opportunity even if it's come late in life. I cannot be a lover boy now but I can be a lover," says the actor.

And so the journey towards romance continues from Paan Singh Tomar which he describes as a "sad love letter to the country from Tigmashu Dhulia" to Shoojit Sircar's Piku which he terms a "quirky love story"with "diva" Deepika Padukone.

But what he's really looking forward to is doing a love story with Vishal Bhardwaj. "He wins my heart by the way he writes. From what I have seen of Haider, it's one of Vishal's best films and Shahid's (Kapoor) best performance. Shraddha (Kapoor) is like a flower and Tabu, who has been a part of so many turning points in my life--from Maqbool to The Namesake to the Padma Shri which we were both honoured with in the same year--has grown more beautiful and grown as an actress over the years," he asserts.

His rhapsodies pause abruptly when you quiz him about his role in the desi Hamlet. Saying that it's hard to define, he recalls his first visit to Kashmir for Vishal's Saat Khoon Maaf and then his return for Haider.

"It's one of the most beautiful places on earth and also one of the worst given the horrible living conditions," he sighs. "My character is a reflection of these these socio-political aspects. I'm the conscience of the place, the soul and spirit of the movie." There's a poet in Irrfan too! 

Subhash K Jha (DNA; April 24, 2014)

Irrfan Khan is in Hawaii shooting for Jurassic World with Bryce Dallas Howard (daughter of director Ron Howard).

Says the source from the location, “Bryce is a rising star in her own right. She plays a stellar role in the film.”
Apparently, Bryce has a ‘voracious curiosity’ for Bollywood. Adds the source from location, “Bryce and Irrfan have hit it off like a house on fire.”

Interestingly, Bryce has gone to the same acting school as Natalie Portman. Irrfan earlier worked with Natalie in Mira Nair’s short film Kosher, Vegetarian. Says Irrfan, “I’ve been exceptionally lucky with my heroines. Right from my first film Govind Nihalani’s Drishti where my co-star was the stunning Dimple Kapadia, I’ve worked with some of the most beautiful actresses on this earth from Tabu to Natalie.”

Roshmilla Bhattacharya (MUMBAI MIRROR; April 5, 2014)

Within a year of graduating from Royal College of Art, British-Indian filmmaker Asif Kapadia flagged off his debut feature film with Irrfan Khan in the lead. The Warrior released in 2001 and went on to bag two BAFTAs, including the award for Best British film. It was also UK’s entry in the Best Foreign Language Film category at the Oscars before being rejected on the grounds that it was a Hindi film, a language not indigenous to Britain.

The film helped kick start Irrfan’s now flourishing crossover career. And 13 years later the two are set to collaborate again. This time the actor and the director are working on a screen adaptation of Ethiopian-born doctor Abraham Verghese’s 2009 novel Cutting For Stone, which revolves around a pair of conjoined twins, who abandoned by their father, grow up in the home of two Indian physicians, Kalpana Hemlatha and Abhi Ghosh.

“This is a parallel track to the main story-- a beautiful love story-- and I’ve been approached to play the part of Ghosh,” says Irrfan, adding that the screenplay has already been written. “The project has been delayed a bit as Asif has got busy with a documentary. I’m really excited about it as only a seven-hour film can do justice to the book. I wouldn’t mind even if it was turned into a TV series,” says the actor.

Asif, he adds, is working on a few other ideas too.“There is another book, Arvind Adiga’s 2011 novel, Last Man In Tower, which I’d given Asif to read and he loved it. I'd want to play the part of Masterji, the lone crusader against a builder's plan to demolish an apartment block. May be we will meet when I am in Los Angeles,” says the actor, who has flown off to the US for a month to shoot for Jurassic World in which he plays Patel, the billionaire owner of the new dino park. It’s a pivotal part and he will return for a second schedule in July. Jurassic World is the fourth film in the popular franchise and Irrfan is hoping to go beyond mere action and big ticket entertainment to touch on more serious issues. “Jurassic Park spoke about how science could be both beneficial and destructive. The Amazing Spider-Man’s tagline was ‘With great power comes great responsibility’. It’s too early to reflect on Jurassic World’s core themes but I’m looking forward to working with Colin Trevorrow, who looks set to repackage the franchise,” he says.

So, has he met producer Steven Spielberg? “Not yet, but I’m eager to see how we connect. He’s a master storyteller and one of the reasons I accepted Jurassic World. I didn’t want to let go of the opportunity to do a Spielberg film,” says Irrfan.

Other than the chance to work with some of the biggest names in the world of entertainment, Hollywood’s meticulous organisation provides him a welcome change from the chaos and spontaneity of Bollywood.

“Even their lives are so structured out there. I am not a product of that system and if I plan my life for even the next two months, I feel claustrophobic. But it’s good to work with filmmakers in the West, live a life where everything is compartmentalized, imbibe some of their discipline for a while and then return home to the same chaos,” he smiles.