Key Points
Irrfan prioritized scene quality over personal performance
Mishra praises actor's collaborative and selfless approach
Rare insights into legendary actor's professional methodology
A resurfaced video of Sudhir talking to casting director Mukesh Chhabra shows the director heaping praise on Irrfan.
He said, "Irrfan was never interested in his performance. He knew that he would do it. He was always watching Deepak Dobrial on the sets. He was always watching the scene. If the scene is amazing, he will also work on it. He would definitely do it. He was sure. That was his preparation. But he wanted the whole scene".
He further mentioned, "Sometimes he would tell me, 'remove my line, sir. You end the scene on this. This is the correct end'. I have never seen an actor as unselfish as him. I mean, in his personal life, he was not so boring. He was very selfish. He wanted everything. He wanted stardom. He wanted to act. He wanted international cinema. But, when he was working, he was very graceful".
Sudhir Mishra, whose career spans 30 years, is a critically acclaimed filmmaker with his work recognised by the Government of India with three National Awards from the president of India, as well as Chevalier of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres from the French government.
Earlier, Sudhir mourned the loss of filmmaker Shyam Benegal.
He took to his X, formerly Twitter, and wrote, "If there is one thing Shyam Benegal expressed best: it was the Poetry of the ordinary face and ordinary lives. Much will be written about Shyam Benegal but for me not many talk about the fact that there was a lament in his films and a sadness about the fact we were not living in the best of all possible worlds".
