Irrfan Khan's wife reveals actor's brilliant improvisation skills

During the book launch of Irrfan Khan: A Life in Movies, written by Shubhra Gupta, Sutapa Sikdar, the late actor's wife, shared fascinating insights into Irrfan's improvisation skills on movie sets. Sutapa recalled a heartwarming incident during the making of Piku when Irrfan's improvisation initially bothered Amitabh Bachchan but later led to a strong friendship.

Sutapa said, “Irrfan would work along with the director and the writer. They would have many drafts by the end of it and when he would go on stage, he would kind of improvise. He would never improvise to take the limelight, but he would try to break the language in a way.”

Irrfan was known for collaborating with directors and writers, and he often improvised certain scenes to break the language barriers in his performances. Sutapa mentioned how, during the filming of Piku, Irrfan's improvisation impressed director Shoojit Sircar, but it initially upset the structured and prepared Amitabh Bachchan. Eventually, they became friends, and the improvised interval scene in the movie left everyone impressed.

Shoojit told Sutapa, “Bachchan saab is very structured and really prepared when he comes and Irrfan improvised and he got really upset. Then they became friends.”

The book launch event, held in Delhi and published by Pan Macmillan India, celebrated the life and legacy of the remarkable actor who passed away on April 29, 2020, after battling a neuroendocrine tumour and colon infection.

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