Irrfan Khan Birthday: When the late actor sobbed whole night after his role in Mira Nair’s Salaam Bombay was chopped

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As a devoted admirer, I can’t help but marvel at the extraordinary talent of the late, great Irrfan Khan. Known for his powerhouse acting performances, profound emotional depth, and remarkable versatility, he was truly one-of-a-kind. His path to fame was long and arduous, with a few initial stumbles along the way.

One of the saddest chapters in this gifted actor’s career was when his role in Mira Nair’s Salaam Bombay (1988) was significantly diminished due to a mismatch in physical appearance for the character. This heartbreaking turn of events left him utterly devastated.

1986 saw Mira Nair, a well-known director, scouting for actors for her movie “Salaam Bombay”. During this process, she paid a visit to the National School of Drama (NSD). It was there that Irrfan Khan made an impact on her with his mesmerizing demeanor and unwavering concentration during a workshop. Impressed by what she saw, Nair decided to cast Khan as Salim, a street kid in the movie.

For the 20-year-old actor, it was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to be chosen for a feature film before finishing his studies. He was the only one from his group to receive such an offer. Moving to Mumbai, he lived with the hope that this chance would establish his career. However, his dream was cut short when Mira realized that Irrfan’s physical appearance did not align with the malnourished street children she intended for him to portray in the film.

Consequently, only two days prior to filming, she was forced to cut back his involvement significantly, shifting him from a major role to a minor one with minimal on-screen presence.

In an interview with Indian Magazine Open 2025, he opened up about the incident and said, “When Mira informed me that my role had been significantly reduced, I cried all night. However, this experience seemed to shift something deep inside me, making me ready for any challenge that might come my way.

Although there were initial obstacles, the filmmaker reassured the actor of Angrezi Medium that she would eventually cast him, which happened more than nineteen years later in The Namesake in 2006. In those intervening years, the actor faced numerous challenges, first on television and then in the movie industry, until he finally broke through with Vishal Bhardwaj’s Maqbool in 2004.

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2025-01-07 03:08