When Sutapa Sikdar was nervous as Irrfan chatted with Hollywood composer in English: ‘Abhi ye kuch galat bolega’

Irrfan will always be remembered for his several critically acclaimed performances in award-winning Hindi films as well as some big Hollywood entertainers. Now in a new book, his wife Sutapa Sikdar has revealed that Irrfan took time in polishing his English. She has revealed that during a dinner with a Hollywood composer, she was afraid that Irrfan would make a grammatical mistake while talking to him but he didn’t. Also read: Babil Khan’s reminds fans of Irrfan with his humble response to photographer: ‘So down to earth like father’

A new book titled Irrfan: A Life in Movies delves more into the actor’s notable career. He featured in Hollywood films Oscar-winning Slumdog Millionaire and Life of Pi, which won four Oscars in various categories, besides Jurassic World and Inferno.

When Irrfan spoke in English with Hollywood composer

An excerpt from one of Sutapa’s interviews features in the book. She talked about being worried during Irrfan’s conversation with composer Hans Zimmer as they sat together for dinner during the shooting for Inferno. As quoted by PTI, she said, “He was conversing and I was getting nervous: abhi ye kuchh galat bolega hi bolega! (He will definitely say something wrong.) But it was amazing, the way he spoke of various things, and then he’s telling (me) in the car ki ‘Tu toh aise baithi hogi apni ungli pakad ke ki ye kab grammatical galti karega.’ (You must have been waiting, holding your breath, for me to make a grammatical mistake).”

Sutapa said Irrfan would have won an Oscar if this was the case

Recalling what she told Irrfan about his performances, she said, “I used to always tell him, ‘Hollywood ki picture agar Hindi mein bolti na, ab tak tujhe Oscar mil gaya hota’ (If Hollywood movies were made in Hindi, you would have got an Oscar by now).”

Sutapa on life with Irrfan

Irrfan died in April, 2020 after his two-year-long neuroendocrine tumour. He is survived by wife Sutapa and sons Babil Khan and Yuvaan Khan. After his death at just the age of 53, Sutapa had penned a long note about their “wondrous, beautiful, overwhelming, painful and exciting journey”. She wrote, “Ours was not a marriage, it was a union. I see my little family, in a boat, with both my sons Babil and Ayaan, paddling it forward, with Irrfan guiding them ‘wahan nahi, yahan se modo (don’t take a turn from there but from here)’ but since life is not cinema and there are no retakes.”

(With PTI inputs)