Shoojit Sircar: It was the real Irrfan Khan that came out in ‘Piku’

Mumbai:  National Award-winning filmmaker Shoojit Sircar said he had never seen Irrfan Khan like the way he was in Piku, adding that the late acclaimed actor’s performance in the film showcased the real and the soothing side of the star.

How did Irrfan balance the humour with the emotional depth in his role? Was it something he brought to the table instinctively?

Shoojit told IANS: “Well, I would say that it’s absolutely natural. He is like that. He brings in that freshness. In Piku, he looked like, I don’t know, there’s something so beautiful that he looked like in the film. So charming, so warm Irrfan. I have not seen this kind of an Irfran in any of the films that I’ve watched.”

The filmmaker asserted that the real side of the late star came out in Piku, which is set to complete 10 years in Hindi cinema on May 8.

Shoojit added: “Particularly in Piku, there’s something very soothing about him, which just made you really comfortable. You love everything about him. There’s no way that you can’t fall in love with Rana.So, I think it was the real Irfan that came out in this film. Romantic Irfan.”

“Piku” is set for a re-release on May 9. The comedy drama, which is set to clock 10 years since its release, stars Amitabh Bachchan, Deepika Padukone and Irrfan Khan along with Moushumi Chatterjee, Jisshu Sengupta and Raghubir Yadav.

The film revolved around Piku, an architect and her ageing but nagging father Bhaskor Banerjee, who come close via a road trip to Kolkata despite their disparate ideologies and fights over trivial issues.

Shoojit made his directorial debut with the romantic war drama Yahaan in 2005. He gained the spotlight with the top-grossing social romantic comedy Vicky Donor in 2012). He followed it a year later with the political action thriller Madras Cafe.

His home production, the legal thriller Pink. He subsequently directed and produced the coming-of-age drama October and the Amazon Prime Video’s comedy Gulabo Sitabo. The filmmaker gained further prominence in 2021 with the biographical historical drama Sardar Udham.

–IANS