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| Irrfan poses for the t2 camera in Raniganj Picture: Anindya Shankar Ray |
Irrfan Khan spent Tuesday morning and afternoon shooting a high-octane climax sequence as an investigating officer for Yash Raj Films’ Gunday, co-starring Priyanka Chopra, Ranveer Singh and Arjun Kapoor, in the dusty and scorching coalfields of the Belbad Colliery in Raniganj. On the way back to Calcutta to catch a late evening flight to Mumbai, the man who mesmerised us with The Lunchbox, chatted with t2 on movies and their magic.
Shooting in a coalfield in 40°C must be a real challenge...
Shooting in such hot weather is very demanding and challenging. Plus, there’s been so much dust this time because we have been shooting in a coalfield. By the time it’s evening, one is completely exhausted. But kya karein? When you have to do it, you have to do it.
On a day like this, do you wish that you had a 9-to-5 job in an air-conditioned cubicle?
(Laughs) No, never. It’s part of the job. If a writer has a problem picking up his pen to write, then you know there’s a problem somewhere. Every job has its challenges... you have to connect with it... be with it. Once you are in it, you can’t complain: ‘Awwww, it’s too hot!’ You have to rise above these challenges and make your job work for you.
What are the emotions like when you wrap up a film? Is it a sense of relief or do you find it difficult to let go after spending so much time with it?
There’s no standard emotion... it varies from film to film, just like it does with any relationship. Some relationships leave you with more fond memories than the rest. With some films, the bond is sometimes stronger than it is with others.
The Lunchbox has opened to wide acclaim. Some are calling it a life-changing experience. What has it been for you?
See, the story itself was very unique. There were no other incentives for me in taking up this film other than this role. The story had a kind of charm that told me that I should do this part. The way people are connecting to it has been great... unusual. It doesn’t happen with Hindi films generally. The way the film has found its language universally is very rare for a Hindi film. The way the film was picked up by distributors across the world… it doesn’t happen everyday. This film had a chance to create a perception about India and its films. The Indian films that have made it to the international arena have so far been films that have been directed by Westerners… it’s their point of view about India. But here comes a film about India made by an Indian director (Ritesh Batra) and having an Indian cast and crew… it’s an Indian film in every way. The Lunchbox gives us a language of cinema that Indian audiences are not familiar with. It gives them a taste of world cinema.
Just as an actor can gauge that a film is going wrong even while it’s being made, did you realise while shooting The Lunchbox that magic was being created?
Honestly, it’s not always that you realise that a film is not working while you are shooting it. That’s because you don’t know how it will turn out eventually. Most of the time you realise it’s not working, but still the film may surprise you when it comes out.... The Lunchbox had that magic right from the beginning. It was shot over very few days, but it’s a film that allowed me to explore myself as an actor. But even while magic is being created in a scene or a moment, you don’t know whether it will translate into the same magic in the whole film.
So what happens when a film doesn’t turn out the way you thought it would?
See, uncertainty is part and parcel of this job. You have to learn to overcome disappointments quickly. When a film doesn’t turn out well, you do get hurt, but you have to push it aside and move on. That’s part of the job… and part of life.
Any comment about Lunchbox that’s been special for you?
It’s not just one… hundreds of articles have been written, millions of comments have been made on the film. What is interesting is how the film has meant so many different things to people… it’s connected on so many levels. Just now, I got an SMS from someone [reads it out: ‘The actor I saw in Equus (a play in which Irrfan acted in his earlier days) has grown up to such a level unimaginable. Me and my wife had tears after your performance’].... It’s touched people emotionally. Some have written in saying: ‘I couldn’t take my eyes off you’. Some have said it has been the experience of a lifetime....
What does your family have to say about The Lunchbox?
My wife (Sutapa Sikdar) loved it. She’s watched it twice. She’s someone who will praise me for my films and also criticise me when she thinks I am not good enough.
The Lunchbox was looked at as India’s best chance at the Oscars, after a very long time....
(Cuts short) I am not in a position to talk about this now. I will definitely talk about it sometime soon, but not now.
But have you watched The Good Road, that is India’s official entry to the Oscars?
Yes, I have. I advise you to watch it… I request you to watch it. Everyone in this country who is concerned about the Oscar issue, should watch the film.
You refused Christopher Nolan’s Interstellar, co-starring Matt Damon, Anne Hathaway and Jessica Chastain, to be in India to promote D-Day and The Lunchbox. That must have been a tough decision to make…
Very, very tough. But it was a long commitment and there were also certain other issues.... I feel I have a lot to achieve. I’ve had the good fortune of doing some good roles both here and there, but I am always looking to better myself. Good roles will always be a priority. I feel I am in this comfortable position where I have managed to connect with the audience. Nothing satisfies an actor more than reaching out to people’s hearts, sharing your experiences with the audience and making your experiences their experiences. I feel fortunate.
One feels you are in this envious position where you don’t have to bother about Fridays…
But I do! As an actor, you are always eager to know whether you are viable or not. Your directors need to know whether you are viable or not. You have to keep track of these things. The interesting thing is whether you should give what the industry demands or explore newer things. You have to decide, as an actor, what you want.
So what do you think about the Rs 100cr club? Have you watched, say, a Chennai Express?
Not Chennai Express, but I have seen Kahaani, Madras Café. They are not Rs 100cr films, I know. I don’t watch films just because they have done big business. I watch films because I want to watch them. I thought Madras Café was a very gutsy and engaging take on our political history and Shoojit Sircar’s integrity shines through. D-Day was a similar film. It was a bold film to make. Sadly, there’s been an education from the media to the audiences that Rs 100cr is the yardstick… ‘go and watch this film because it has done this much business’. I don’t think Life of Pi will be remembered because it did Rs 6,000-7,000cr business. It will be remembered for the film it is. I don’t remember how much Guide or Sahib, Bibi Aur Ghulam or Pakeezah made. That yardstick itself is a curse and somewhere, the media should be careful about creating this perception.
But if a film makes so much money, isn’t it because the audience chooses to watch it in the first place?
But the media has to stop telling the audience that Rs 100cr is the yardstick for a film’s success. The audience often gets confused, you know. And everyone has an opinion these days. Like in cricket, even a housewife will have an opinion on whether Brett Lee has bowled the right or wrong way. The media has to be responsible.
You are India’s face in the international film scenario. What is the world’s perception about Indian films?
It’s the same perception we have about item songs. For them, Bollywood is still song ’’ dance. And we haven’t done enough to change that. You tell me, what have we done? This film (The Lunchbox) that was received so well, talked about in foreign circles so much and needed a fair reaction didn’t get one here. It’s disappointing.
