Irrfan Khan was a phenomenal actor who traversed easily through both Bollywood and Hollywood. Let’s remember the great actor by counting down to his top ten roles.
10. Hindi Medium
The film which got Irrfan Khan his first Filmfare Best Actor award, Hindi Medium was commercial entertainment at its best form. With its witty one liners and an insightful take on the education system, Hindi Medium instantly connected with people. The movie’s commercial output established Irrfan Khan as a bankable actor at the box office thus changing the industry’s view of a ‘star’ in many ways.
9. Mumbai Meri Jaan
A movie which showed what devastation an act of terror can bring to a city and its people, Mumbai Meri Jaan had its heart in the right place. Out of the ensemble cast, Irrfan Khan’s performance garnered the most praise from critics and the audience. Although his role was short on dialogues, Irrfan managed to impress audience with his innocence and perfect facial expressions.
8. Life Of Pi
An adventure drama based on Yann Martel‘s 2001 novel by the same name, Life Of Pi was a visual spectacle. Praised for its direction and fantastical storytelling, it had Irrfan Khan playing the role of Pi Patel narrating his story to a writer. Subtle and superbly underplayed, Irrfan Khan made the movie move from one timeline to another with ease. The movie got nominated for the best picture at the Oscars, thus laying the foundation to the representation of India in international cinema.
7. D-Day
D-Day is a film about a team of four intelligence officers sent to Pakistan to bring back India’s most wanted man. On the surface, it seemed more like a movie in the Zero Dark Thirty zone but was actually more of an emotional drama than a thriller. It can be easily touted as Nikhil Advani’s second best movie after Kal Ho Na Ho. Irrfan Khan played an undercover Indian intelligence officer with ease. His constant back and forth with Arjun Rampal was among the best moments from the film. A highly underrated movies which surely deserved more attention.
6. Life In A Metro
A movie more known for its amazing soundtrack, Life In A Metro dealt with complex emotions with various story lines running in parallel. The wacky relationship between Irrfan Khan and Konkona Sen Sharma who meet over a dot-com agency date brings in the most laughs in this otherwise serious movie. The scene of Irrfan khan chasing Konkana Sen on a horse remains till today the most memorable scene of the movie.
5. Maqbool
The first film from Vishal Bhardwaj’s Shakespeare trilogy, the plot of the film is based on Macbeth. Irrfan played Maqbool,the right-hand man of Jahangir Khan (Pankaj Kapur), a powerful underworld don whose wife he is in love with. The depiction of guilt and lust for power through Irrfan Khan’s highly emotive eyes took the drama a notch higher. Maqbool is still considered Irrfan Khan’s claim to fame as it was after this movie that he established himself as a solo lead and went on to do many more movies playing the central character.
4. The Namesake
The Namesake follows two generations of a Bengali family from late-1970s Calcutta to New York City. Deepa Mehta’s English language film opened to unanimous critical acclaim featuring in the top ten lists of many renowned critics. The movie brought international acclaim to Irrfan and was a major stepping stone in his international career. It was after The Namesake that he started to get recognized by international filmmakers leading to him starring in many international movies like Slumdog Millionaire, The Amazing Spiderman, and many more.
3. Piku
Piku was a film with tremendous heart and nuanced details showing off wit, progressive thought and insightful writing. All three leads of the film, Padukone, Bachchan and Khan (bottom), received widespread praise for their performances. The movie, along with huge critical acclaim, went on to do very good at the box office emerging as a hit. The movie had very less story and was instead a series of moments which touch your heart. It is one of Irrfan’s many movies which have aged gracefully and is still watched heavily on OTT platforms.
2. Talvar
The film is based on the 2008 Noida double murder case involving a teenage girl and her family’s servant. Starring Irrfan Khan, Konkona Sen Sharma and Neeraj Kabi, the film follows the investigation of a case from three different perspectives in which her parents are either guilty or innocent of the murder. Irrfan Khan plays the role of an investigation officer impressively, with restrained perfection. The movie surely can be counted among the best whodunit movies made in Indian cinema and gives a different perspective to the famous case’s perception in popular media.
1. Paan Singh Tomar
A biography based on the story of the athlete by the same name, Paan Singh Tomar is a story of a soldier in the Indian Army, who even after winning a gold medal at the Indian National Games for the country is forced to become a rebel against the system. Irrfan depicted the tragedy of Paan Singh Tomar with brilliance and mastered the dialect required for the role with perfection. The role won Irrfan the National award for Best Actor, and the movie also went on to win the national award for the best film.
Irrfan Khan may not be amongst us physically today but that does not mean he’s not here. Artists never truly die, they live on through their work. The great filmography which Irrfan Khan has left for us is a proof that it doesn’t take genes to make it big in this world, what it takes is love—undying love for your craft; unflinching love for the art you make; unending faith in your own capabilities. If you have the power to do that, then God makes sure that your dreams find their way. All you have to do is hang in there, wait, wait for your time.