1 May 2020 | Tribute: Irrfan Khan | Drop in the ocean

1 May 2020

International significance

May 1 is marked as International Labour Day, also referred to as May Day. The day celebrates labourers and the working class.

Labour Day has its origins in the labour union movement in the United States.
During industrialisation in beginning of the 19th Century, the industrialists used to exploit the labour class and made them work up to 15 hours a day. The workers rose against this exploitation and demanded paid leaves, proper wages and breaks for the workforce.

The eight-hour day labour movement advocated eight hours for work, eight hours for recreation, and eight hours for rest. The Labour Day annually celebrates the achievements of the workers.

While the day has different story for different countries, the main reason for Labour Day is unfair treatment of the labour class.

Personal significance

May 1 back home is Maharashtra Day, commonly known as Maharashtra Din / Maharashtra Diwas in the Indian state of Maharashtra, commemorating the formation of the state of Maharashtra on 1 May 1960. It is celebrated to commemorate the creation of a Marathi speaking state of Maharashtra.

Unfortunately, Maharashtra is also suffering the most currently under COVID-19 and the financial capital of the country, Mumbai accounts for nearly 70% of Maharashtra’s total COVID-19 count. There’s a lot of history behind Marathi, Mumbai, Maharashtra – but more on that later.

Jawaharlal Nehru, Yashwantrao Chavan and Sri Prakasa unveiling a map of the new state of Maharashtra at Raj Bhavan, Mumbai, on 1 May 1960.

Tribute: Irrfan

“Maybe to become famous is to reassure yourself that whatever you’re lacking inside, you’ve fulfilled that” – Irrfan

‘Uncertainty is the only certainty’, observed Irrfan, as he gave us a glimpse into his ongoing journey – from the shock of the diagnosis to the calmness of the realisation that ‘the cork doesn’t need to control the current it’s floating in’

Do read the eloquent letter which Irrfan wrote back when he was diagnosed with neuroendocrine tumour. A lot to be said about his realizations, but I will try to keep this post unique to some facts which I myself didn’t know and had to do some research to find out.

When asked who is my favourite Bollywood personality, I always respond with “Shahrukh Khan”. But I only discovered after his demise that my favourite actor of Indian origin is “Irrfan Khan”. If only I realized this before, not that it makes any difference to the man himself, but yes, dead people receive more flowers than the living ones because regret is stronger than gratitude.

Rest in peace sir. Artists move on, but their art and impact lingers around long after their departure.

“You cannot reduce the power of story with the tag of money because it’s not a share market. So you must know the seriousness of the power of storytelling” – Irrfan

Irrfan Khan was trained as a theatre actor in India’s prestigious National School of Drama, but then struggled working as a television actor.

His first big break was in British Indian filmmaker Asif Kapadia’s film The Warrior (2001). By 2007 Irrfan was already a star in “Bollywood”, India’s Hindi film industry.

His big break internationally came the next year – Danny Boyle’s unexpected hit film, Slumdog Millionaire. After that, there was no looking back. Soon he landed blockbuster movies like – The Amazing Spider-Man (2012), although a rather small role, Jurassic World (2015) and Inferno (2016).

Irrfan suddenly became the most successful Indian actor to perform in a Hollywood film. While people back home were obsessed about the ‘100 crore club’ – he had already become part of ‘1000 crore club’ with Jurassic World, a key role in a franchise film that went on to earn $1.7bn (£1.4bn) worldwide.

However, that did not mean he was chasing money or fame. 🙂

1. In 2015 he said no to working on Ridley Scott’s The Martian starring Matt Damon, instead choosing a charming love story Piku, set in Delhi and Kolkata.
2. Earlier as well, Irrfan had said no to Ridley Scott’s Body of Lies (2008) starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Russell Crowe
3. Irrfan was reportedly also approached to play a part in Steven Spielberg’s next venture, wherein he would share screen space with Scarlett Johansson – the actor reasoned that he didn’t feel the character he was offered gave him much scope.
4. Last but not the least, Irrfan made a tough call of turning down Christopher Nolan’s ‘Interstellar’. He had told BT in an interview, “They expected a huge commitment from my end. I had to stay in the US for four months at a stretch. I tried to work out my schedule and suggested if I could shuttle between India and the US as it wouldn’t have been possible for me to be there for that long. I wanted to be here for The Lunchbox and D-Day. They couldn’t allow that. I don’t have a tendency to regret what I do, but knowing it’s a Christopher Nolan film, I can say that this has been one of the most difficult decisions I’ve made.

These are just few shades depicting the painting which the life of the star / actor Irrfan was. One can of course, never perfectly encapsulate a human being, but we can see glimpses of the persona through actions and decisions, and not just words and intentions.

“Whenever I go to my hometown, I still see people discussing how our forefathers did what they did, and how they are very proud of that. They are not responsible for their own choices. I feel sad. I feel what is the point of living in the past. You are alive. Your actions matter. Your actions and choices are going to make your life.” – Irrfan

• Irrfan dropped Khan from his name when he stepped into Bollywood.
• He did not want to be known for his lineage, caste or religion.
• Irrfan only wanted to be identified and remembered for his good work.
• He turned vegeterian even after taking birth in a Muslim family.

There’s nothing I can say about Irrfan the actor that won’t be said more eloquently by those who understand his craft better. So I’d simply like to document this blog post and let it go in the ocean of tributes, to salute Irrfan the person, as I have come to know him through all the wonderful personal anecdotes that people close to him have shared.

I wanted to come up to you Irrfan sir, and tell you all this in person. But I have not accomplished enough in life to be able to breathe the same air that you do. So I will continue to watch your performances and re-live your beautiful artistic moments through Life of Pi, The Lunchbox, Piku, Karwaan, Qarib Qarib Singlle, Paan Singh Tomar, Billu, The Namesake, Haider, Life in a Metro, Mumbai Meri Jaan and more.

RIP.

Drop in the ocean

I have lately been in a mental state where I have been thinking about idealism, about purpose, meaning of life (and all the corny / cheesy / typical life crisis thoughts).

I almost did not write this blog post. There is a time to resign, and accept that everything is hopeless and the end is inevitable, but “today is not that day”. And tomorrow won’t be either. 🙂 Do not go gentle into that good night, whenever that phase comes in your respective lives.

So here’s another drop in the ocean of tributes to the actor who definitely touched more lives than I ever could.
And maybe it won’t have the same impact in terms of reach to the world, but hopefully it will make up for it in depth by reaching a few of my close ones.

“We realize that what we are accomplishing is a drop in the ocean. But if this drop were not in the ocean, it would be missed.” ~ Mother Teresa

Charity, if you have the means, is a personal choice. Request you to please donate for the cause below generously. No one has ever become poor by giving. Your “good old days” are still ahead of you, may you have many of them. And let’s do our bit to ensure we privileged ones spread the cheer. Especially for the labour class, on the auspicious occasion of ‘Labour Day’.

If you can or wish to, donate for India’s fight against COVID-19

“I for India” is India’s largest fundraiser concert, to help raise funds for the India COVID Response Fund (ICRF). The concert will feature India’s leading actors, musicians, singers, sportspersons and industrialists – all coming together to support COVID relief work, on 3rd May 2020 at 7.30pm IST.

Let’s unitedly fight against COVID-19.

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