Irrfan Khan on the fight against cancer and his return to Bollywood

Indian National Award winner Irrfan Khan spent most of 2019 and the year before battling an almost deadly brain tumor in London, but had an iconic Hindi song that kept playing in her head. In more ways than one, these verses have defined this dark period of his life that came out of nowhere.

I tell life: Lag Jaa Gale Ki Phir Yeh Haseen Shaam Ho Naa Ho, Shayad Is Janam Mein Mulaqaat Ho Na Ho can meet or never meet again in my lifetime), Khan said in an exclusive email interview with the Gulf News tabloid.

Khan, 52, was referring to the iconic romantic song sung by Lata Mangeshkar which sums up the weaknesses in the lives of two lovers and these lines continue to be important to all those who have lost loved ones or courted the dead.

By the way, his choice of words tinged with sadness and hope was a wise choice for this actor who was diagnosed with a high-grade neuroendocrine tumor in March 2018, which the actor himself did on Twitter to inform his fans. But he is entering a new chapter in his career this week.

Khan, who has starred in over 100 films, returns to the big screen on March 12 with Angrezi Medium, a warm and fuzzy father-daughter tale directed by one of Bollywood's best directors, Homi Adjania, who waited for the actor to recover so that he could start filming.

My health problems came out of nowhere. Yes, I took a break and I am hopeful to return, added Khan.

Khan embodies an adoring father from a small Indian town of Angrezi Medium, who will strive to help his ambitious daughter realize her dream of studying at a prestigious UK university. United.

The actor may have doubts about his attractiveness and skills, but his army of ardent fans will flawlessly guarantee his long lasting attraction among moviegoers.

It is obvious that no return of the actors to Bollywood was as expected in 2020 as Irfan Khans whose credits include a series of visceral and amazing films such as Paan Singh Tomar, Piku, Maqbool and The Lunchbox. Khan was last seen in the road movie slice of life Karwaan in 2018, in which the gangly actor pushed the story forward with his sardonic spirit and his brand flamboyance.

As director Adjania who put his film on hold for 18 months until Khan retrieves it, I was not watching a finish line, the film was shot as organically as we & # 39; We took each day as we went along. This film was made with so much love and laughter.

The two men met in Mumbai in 2006 during the screening of director Mira Nairs, the famous film The Namesake, who saw Khan in brilliant form in the role of Ashok, a first-time Indian immigrant. generation in the United States. The two talked about collaboration, but it took them more than a decade to realize their dream of working together. According to the director, Khan has revealed his most sensitive side as an actor in Angrezi Medium.

As an actor, I believe they tap into their circumstances and what's going on in their lives and you will find these nuances seeping into their character. All this experience has made Irrfan sensitive and sensitive to what really matters in life that we forget in our daily life. We often complicate our lives with insignificant bullshit and he brings these aspects to life with his role, said Adjania.

While their latest film Angrezi Medium, which tells of a father's quest to get his daughter through a foreign university, is about to go out to the United Arab Emirates, here is an interview with Khan as we talk about the fleeting nature of movies, life, fears and unrealized dreams

I am the mother and father of my only daughter. He will do everything to fulfill his dreams of studying abroad. What he is going through and what he is doing is the plot of the film. For me, trying to be a mother in a patriarchal society to which he clearly belongs was the overlay that I loved the most. I play an adored father who is endearing and innocent.

These are completely different films and there are thousands of films on poverty. It is not poverty, but wealth in the characters.

I have led a very satisfied life and I am trying to make it more positive and satisfying now. Although a dream I had was to have a daughter who never came true.

I don't remember having a favorite father-daughter film, but the girls are very special. I don't have one but I have always dreamed of it. I dreamed of having one and I'm sure I would have made it feel special and spoiled it. For all the girls, I mean Tere maathe pe yeh aanchal bahut khubsurat hai lekin tu est aanchal ka parcham bana leti toh aacha tha. (Your veil is beautiful on your forehead, but it would have been better if you had turned it into a flag).

It was the writers' way of saying that he is breaking apart because his daughter will leave him and go to study abroad. But outside, he is proud that his daughter passed the exams and that she ventured alone.

The public should let the girls fly. Just be happy and do what they want. Concerning a second installment, Dinoo (producer) is the person to be questioned about the franchises.

Kareena is a superb actress and she may still not know her potential. Radhika is budding and she will become a great actor, while Deepak is my boyfriend in the game and I love our jugalbandi (interaction).

My greatest strength as a human being is that I know how to be curious and wonderful all the time. My biggest fear is to never succumb to any fear.

Angrezi Medium hits theaters in the United Arab Emirates on March 12.

I don't feel any pressure to present Irrfan as an actor … Irrfan and I wanted to collaborate longer since the screening of The Namesake and if you look at the world today, it's time to relax and to make people laugh. This movie embodies what love is … With everything that's going on in the world today, we need a movie that will make you laugh at your belly and not from your throat. There is a beautiful soul for Angrezi Medium, said Homi Adjania

Irrfan Khan and director Homi Adjania spent a lot of time together in London during the summer when Khan was being treated for a neuroendocrine tumor.

We used to spend time and discuss everything about the film. Irrfan is such a beautiful human being, very sensitive and aware. And, I look forward to these qualities also entering the film. I have never seen Irrfan like this before in any film, said Adjania.