I wasn't hoping for Hollywood, things just happened: Irrfan Khan

There is a telling weariness in Irrfan Khan's tone, even as you hear it thousands of miles away, over transmission. The star is in Florence to promote his new international movie, in which he co-stars with Tom Hanks. Perhaps jet-lagged and definitely wanting to just unwind over a hot dinner, he ruefully admits over the telephone, "I'm also uncomfortable giving interviews." Where Khan is comfortable is before the camera. His gait, his eyes, his voice transform until he shape-shifts into the part he plays. What Khan leaves us with are unforgettable characters, from Maqbool (2004), The Namesake (2007), Slumdog Millionare (2008), Life Of Pi (2012), The Lunchbox (2013), Piku (2015) and Talvar (2015). This is a man who straddles his global identity as easily as his Indian one, juggling arthouse cinema with mainstream Hollywood like The Amazing Spiderman (2012) and Jurassic World (2015).

And in a second, Khan switches on his professional side during this interview, revealing the personality that makes him so interesting.

What sets a trendsetter apart?
There are people who want formulas, who just want to emulate others. And then, there are those who want something of their own. When they explore their personalities, innovation happens. And this strange word that the world has found - 'trending' - I don't care for it. You should care for what affects the heart. That has deeper meaning. Trends come and go.

What do you feel sets you apart?
I don't know. Maybe it was that I wanted to be an actor, but I didn't desire to be famous. It's difficult for me to dissect it. But I do have a particular need to evolve, to do things that are relevant. I'm not looking for survival today. I want things that add to my personality.

So many actors try to break into Hollywood, but you've created a niche. What worked for you?
I wasn't hoping to break into Hollywood. Things fell into place organically. I only dreamt of being an actor. And life tested me - I spent seven-eight years waiting. Surrendering has served me well. I trust myself. I don't take credit for my success. I didn't choose to be born on this planet nor do I know my death. I'm only in charge of my thoughts. I leave everything else to the bigger design. This has sorted me as a person - I used to be very uncomfortable with myself before.


Team Inferno (L to R) Omar Sy, Irrfan Khan, Ron Howard, Tom Hanks, Felicity Jones & writer Dan Brown pose at the Belvedere fortress in Florence (Image: AFP)

Who do you look up to?
Naseer (Naseeruddin Shah) and Dilip Kumar; they gave me the intense desire to explore this field. I am fascinated by Marlon Brando and Philip Seymour Hoffman. I admire Daniel Day Lewis. He does one film and disappears. He is not a machine chasing fame.

Where do you feel the next big trendsetting idea will come from?
Scientific innovation has only catered to convenience. Gandhiji once said that you must do physical labour, but here, we want to eliminate it. Why are we exploring going to Mars or the moon? If we have a problem here, we go to another planet. That's a clever escape route. Why not take care of this gift given to us? I may sound old-fashioned, but I don't care.