Irrfan was happy. He had reason to be. His small budget film, the comedy drama Hindi Medium directed by Saket Chaudhary, had turned out to be a commercial success. This was in 2017. There was a big celebration at the Sofitel in BKC. The filmmakers, Dinesh Vijan and Bhushan Kumar, had called the media to join the cast and crew at a party. Irrfan was in a gregarious mood. He asked me somewhat exuberantly, “Tum kuch piyoge?”
“I am a teetotaler,” I told him. “Aah, mujhe bas isski zaroorat hai,” Irrfan said pulling out a tobacco pouch from his jacket pocket. The action reminded me of my first meeting with the actor. This was in 2012. He and Tigmanshu Dhulia had come to my Dainik Bhaskar office to promote their biographical Paan Singh Tomar. In a conspiratorial whisper Irrfan had asked me, “Yeha smoke karne ke liye koi jagah hai?” And the tobacco pouch had come out.
We stepped outside the office. Where a sign said “No Smoking”. Irrfan chose not to read it. He was restless. Longing for a smoke. “Bas yeh miljaye toh dimag khula jaata hai,” he explained. Then, looking at his watch, he asked, “Kitna time jayega yeha? Beta jaldi faariq (relieve me) kardo. Issko (looking at Tigmanshu) koi problem nahi. Lekin mujhe jana hai.”
Surprisingly, he remembered that moment at the Hindi Medium success bash in 2017. Shaking his head in mock amusement, Irrfan was to tell me, “Tum media wale sukoon se jeene nahi denge.” It was true. And last night, perhaps sensing his end had come, Irrfan had wished for a silent death away from the media glare. Sadly his wish was to come true. Shackled by the stringent Covid-19 lockdown, there was little the media could do but mourn from afar while the actor was taken to the Versova Kabiristan for his burial this afternoon.
I remember standing aside from the hullabaloo at the Hindi Medium party and talking to Irrfan at the Sofitel. He was to tell me, “This is real success. If you put 60 or 70 crore into making a film and it collects 100 crore at the box office, that is not success. But when a 20 crore film makes 100 crore, then it is declared a hit. I am so happy.” He shared that moment on Twitter with a picture of his costar Deepak Dobariyal, my colleague RJ Alok and me.”
Irrfan was choosy with his films. “The script should touch my soul first. Pocket is secondary. But yes, kabhi kabhi paise ke liye bhi kaam karna padta hai,” he said, telling me which films he made for extra bucks, some of which didn’t take off. One was Sai Kabir’s ambitious Indo-French co-production Divine Lovers with Kangana Ranaut. It had been announced at a very cozy event at Olive in 2014 where I met Irrfan with a couple of senior journalists. He had said then, “Har waqt Shikanji nahin, kabhi cocktail bhi piya karte hai.”
At Olive, over a cup of coffee, I impulsively asked Irrfan if he would do a film based on the life of mid-day crime reporter J Dey who was sensationally gunned down at Powai in broad daylight by the underworld in 2011. “I don’t want to do any biopics now,” he replied bluntly. I was disappointed, yes, but could not help appreciate his attitude.
I was not his good friend as a journalist. But I respected his work immensely. Though he did not accept appreciation or praise easily. It was rare that Irrfan responded with a “thank you” or a smiley when praised. But that’s how he was. You just had to accept him.
It is not a distinction I am proud of, but I broke the story of Irrfan quietly going to the UK to treat his cancer in 2018. His manager and PR team did not like it at all. But I was only doing my duty as a professional journalist. Personally, I wanted Irrfan to overcome the cancer and return to Bollywood to live a long, hale and hearty life.
That was not to be. And I was moved to tears when I saw him for the last time in Angrezi Medium. The film is him all the way. With his restless look and half-hearted smile. As if he knew that this was acting; reality was when he stepped off the set and faced life again. I prefer to remember him in the picture of us that Irrfan shared. Really laughing happily.
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