Thank you IRRFAN -the actor who is Invisible Rare Ready Funny Authentic Natural

These are the words of an actor who has moved on. His body of work is proof of the depth of his talent. In fact for me, Irrfan has left a legacy of HOPE & POSITIVITY in his fans!

I admired his work and as a true blue fan and so thought of paying him this ode. Qualities that made him stand poles apart from the rest in his fraternity. In a world where looks were important he was real, believable & perfect. He was so vulnerable as an actor and the duration he was on screen he lit it up! You were so involved with his role that it seemed he was the character. The Namesake had me crying for a long time after I saw it . It did not seem like Tabu and Irrfan were acting. Piku on the other hand brought out a romantic angle to the actor's talent.

We could draw parallels to Steve Jobs who believed, "Have the courage to follow your heart & intuition. They somehow know what you truly want to become." Irrfan was very clear that he did not want to stereotype himself to fit into a conventional mould. He was fortunate he did not have to do it. He succumbed to neuroendocrine tumour very similar to Steve Jobs. Both knew they did not have a long time on hand & lived it to the fullest! Both prepared everyone around them for the inevitable. Both left when the world had not had their fill! Both made fans wished they were around longer to continue weaving their magic.

There were certain qualities of Irrfan his fans loved about him. Each of the first alphabets sum up to his name IRRFAN:

Invisible: The ability to gel into his role so powerfully that you cannot separate the actor from the role. "His ability to be so effortless that those watching him could never see his preparation," says Naseeruddin Shah admiringly! When any artiste is effortless you know there have been years of work they have done on themselves to reach that stage. His co stars vouch for that quality. His silence and his eyes did all the magic.Tom Hanks his co star in Inferno said this of Irrfan,"I’m just beguiled by his magic eyes. He has a physicality to him that is so specific and endearing."

Rare: He is definitely one of his kind .He did not forget where he began and the struggle to reach where he did. He was completely self made. He represents a rare combination of having had no Godfather and still proving that when you are working hard & are positive you become "destiny's child." His trajectory of crossing over to International shores but doing it quietly and yet making a mark is proof of how sensitivity & realism can also keep the cash registers ringing both at home & internationally. His sensible balance between parallel & commercial made him a rare artiste who successfully crossed the borders nationally & internationally.

Ready:A graduate of Delhi’s National School of Drama (NSD), Irrfan wanted to come to films but it was television that chose him. He worked for many years & this had fine tuned his performances when he moved to cinema. In Haasil & Maqbool his performances were impeccable and pitch perfect. You hated him but his characters just stayed with you long after. He was definitely showed us what being ready is all about.

Funny: His co stars Nimrat Kaur & Kareena Kapoor vouch for this humour. Though Irfaan comes across as very serious , Shabana Azmi feels that his ability to laugh at himself, His comments on himself, somewhere grounds him & does not allow stardom to stick onto him. Audiences loved him in both Piku & Hindi Medium. His timing .... well pitch perfect!

Authentic:An amazing read , this article is about the book which is a tribute to Irrfan Khan by Aseem Chhabra... the author says after The Mighty Heart was released a few journalists in the US also recognised Irrfan though it was Angelina Jolie who was the bigger star in the press meet...... "I asked Irrfan how he felt about being recognized by reporters who otherwise would have only been interested in celebrities such as Angelina Jolie. Irrfan hesitated for a moment and then, with a smile, he promptly said, ‘I think I need more films. I wish I could get more films like this and people would take notice of me, until everybody knows me.’ The other reporters started to laugh along with Irrfan, given his frank response that depicted his humility.

Natural: Irfaan owned every character he played on screen. He was nuanced in making sure he did not stereotype the role. The duration on screen did not matter. Naseeruddin Shah sums it best in The India Today's interview when he said ,"I saw him in The Warrior and I really found myself saying that 'I wish I was this good when I was of his age.' He had the smell of the earth, he looked authentic."

Thank you Irrfan for showing us what Rumi meant when he said, "I learnt that every mortal will taste death....but only some will taste life."