Irrfan Khan - A tribute recalling his contribution to Indian Cinema

"I Suppose in the end, the whole of life becomes an act of letting go, but what always hurts the most is not having a moment to say goodbye." - Life of Pie (2012) 

And here I am trying to take that moment when a character who tells story become a story itself.  Irrfan Khan died aged 53 on 29 April after long battle with neuroendocrine cancer and left everyone disheartened.  

He was one of the finest actor of film industry and his roles itself made us feel more connected to the story he was living on screen. I remember him first from television only, he was show host of "Mano ya na Mano" on star one.  

Recently, I saw him playing the role of 'senapati' in "Chanakya" serial and my whole family got excited to see him on screen, that is what he did, his mere presence in anything make us glad and proud of our choice. 

He graduated from National school of drama in 1987 and started his career from television industry in various serials like Shrikant, Chandrakanta, Bharat ek Khoj, sparsh,  and many more. 

His first film was Salaam Bombay(1988) based on the lives of street children in Mumbai directed by Mira Nair which was also a nomination for Oscars that year. 

Then he engaged with feature films like Ek doctor ki maut (1990) playing small roles in films. He became a known face of industry soon and gained more recognition after doing films like Haasil (2003) and winning Filmfare award for best actor in a negative role playing Ranjvijay Singh. 

The film Maqbool (2003 )was adapted from Shakespeare's play Macbeth and Irrfan played the role of Macbeth as miyan Maqbool. Miyan Maqbool taught us how some ambition mixed with lust leave us haunting.

Irrfan always did a film for its story and not for its commercial success. 

The Namesake (2006) by Mira Nair in which he played a lead role was one of a kind. The story of  Indian Immigrant couple in U.S.A who tries to balance their life living in cross cultural atmosphere, trying to make their children friendly with their own culture. If you are lover of cinema which tells a different story, it's a must watch.

Irrfan has also done comedy drama movies like Sunday, Krazzy four (2008) and Billu(2009) in which he played a role of barber and loved by all. 

No genre is left where he didn't performed, be it action thriller like knock out(2010),  Ye saali Zindagi (2011)  or Horror like hisss (2010). 

In 2012 Irrfan became a Hero audience always desired, In Paan Singh Tomar 

(2012) who was an Indian soldier and an international athelete turned rebel due to property dispute in which his mother was murdered and police didn't helped him. The film got National award for best feature film and Irrfan got National award for best actor. 

Life of Pie (2012) made Irrfan international star based on Yann Martel book. It is an adventure drama which makes you think about real faith and in the end how everything is an act letting go. 

Irrfan was loved for the role of Saajan Fernandez in The lunchbox (2013) which is also one of his most appreciated film that won many international awards, Saajan is an accountant who recieves wrong lunchbox by Mumbai tiffinwalas one day in which he founds a letter written by wife for her husband, even after knowing this mistake, they built a friendship and share their lives via lunchbox letters. It tells you million of stories of real lives we are aware of in a beautiful manner. 

Piku (2015) is another film of Irrfan with a different storyline, where many role of women was questioned through a father daughter relationship in which Irrfan played the role of taxi business owner helping them to reach Kolkata to sell ancestral home.

Irrfan also did a role in Jazbaa (2015) which is comeback film of Aishwarya Rai Bachchan playing a role of inspector ending the film saying famous dialogue " Mohabbat hai  isliye jaane diya, Zid Hoti toh baahon main Hoti." 

Talvar (2015) was another film in which Irrfan played a role of CBI officer based on Arushi Talvar famous murder mystery. 

Madaari (2016) is movie which tells a disheartening tale of one father whose small son died when a bridge collapsed while he was returning from school. Irrfan Khan as father kidnapped Home minister's son and made all individuals involved guilty of their corruption in construction of bridge. It's a pure masterpiece of talent and storytelling. 

Hindi medium (2017) is the most popular film of Irrfan Khan as it's subject of school education in government sector. He played a role of businesses man who crossed heights for enrolling her daughter in the top English medium school of Delhi. This films showed many aspects of lives in poorness and richness, and that the most rich person is the one who is rich at heart. Qarib Qarib single (2017) made Irrfan Khan famous as chilled out Yoginder aka Yogi  living life in his own terms enjoying Little things with his own philosophies and finding love again.

After a huge success of Hindi medium came a sequel of it as Angrezi medium (2020) Irrfan as a single parent of her daughter and a middle class man wants to complete her daughter childhood dream of going foreign country which she achieves with her academics but Irrfan ruined it for her and then was ready to do anything to complete it. 

It is the last movie of the great actor for whom it's said that his eyes did most of the acting when he performs.

Now those eyes are closed forever but ours will be always open to see him in movies and roles he did, telling us a different story everytime relating to our lives. He will always be remembered through his work. 

Death in my thoughts - a random write up

Life. We don't value it for a second until it seems to go away from the person we love most. 

Loss. Isn't defined by anything more but of a person and time you didn't valued. 

How we all wish for death in depression, anxiety or despair but have you ever seen or thought of life in that form, begging for it, taking the name of all gods you remember, in hope, in need.

As I am growing old, I am realising more of a fact that one day everyone will die. Talking about death is not a good start but the thought of it is not leaving my mind.

I am realising with each passing day that one day all my loved ones will be gone forever and that experience begun in my life two year ago.

Believe me it's the worst kind of experience you will go through and had to make up your mind to deal with it in coming future. 

No one think about it throughout their life, we take all kind of insurances available to escape that experience. 

But we never do anything to make ourselves mentally strong for the devastation which death of someone close bring to us. 

I am at that stage of my life where I have to look at my career and my family at the same time for they are growing old too and need more care than anytime, while my career demands proper studies and gives opportunity to work outside hometown. 

This is where I go perplexed. 

I am playing some scenarios in my head which is not so good to avoid the pain I will go through when death of someone might actually happens. 

Other time I think how selfish and foolish it is of me to think something like that because our thinking has power to make things happen in real life and this kind of negative thinking may have opposite impact. 

I don't know what should I do or talk about when this topic come. 

Maybe I should go read some philosophy about life and death to have peace with it. 

Moreover what to talk with the family persons who are going through it, anything we may speak of dead will bring more memories and emptiness in their lives. They cry as expression of loss and their tears may increase with what we do at that time. How should we console the person who is going through it. No words spoken can heal them or bring the person back in their lives. The emptiness they leave behind can never be filled with some new person or a new job. We can only do is to listen what they have to say in my experience. What they feel and everything they want to share and not poke them with more memories or words of disguise. 

In the end we all are told that time heals everything and most we could do is to reduce the time of healing a person takes when goes through a loss.

We should never push them to forget everything in one go and move on and also not leave them on their own to take their time. 

Poem - Where still lives the mankind

Is there any place left behind,

For the love of mankind,

Where everything is at peace,

Where it's easy to reach,

Where we meet smiling faces,

And not afraid humans of different races,

Where there is no division,

Where everyone loves fusion,

Where there is no fear,

Of life, food, shelter and our peers,

Where we look at the sky above our head,

And not the ground burrying deads,

Where one can roam a mile,

With assurance to return to his child,

Where one can pursue his dreams,

And not sleep hearing screams,

Where one has their own house,

Where they can live with their spouse,

And find friends everywhere they look,

Where we don't fear of any crook.

Tell me if there is any place left behind,

Where still lives the mankind.

© Anushhka Tiwari

वर्तमान राष्ट्रीय परिदृश्य और गांधी जी के विचार

वर्तमान राष्ट्रीय परिदृश्य और गांधी जी के विचार 

गांधी जी के विचारों में  पत्रकारिता का मुख्य उद्देश्य जन सेवा है और अख़बारों के जन मानस को प्रभावित करने की क्षमता वे अच्छी तरह से समझते थे.उन्होंने कहा था की जैसे अनियंत्रित पानी बाढ़ के रूप में एक शहर का सर्वनाश कर सकता है उसी प्रकार एक अनियंत्रित कलम भी लोगों के सर्वनाश का कारण बन सकती है.

उन्होंने कहा की पत्रकारिता को कभी भी व्यावसायिकता पर अपना ध्यान केंद्रित नहीं करना चाहिए और विज्ञापनों का प्रकाशन बंद करने पर विचार करना चाहिए क्योंकि विज्ञापन का प्रकाशन वही लोग करवाते है जिन्हे अमीर बनने की बड़ी जल्दी रहती है और ऐसे व्यक्तियों की यह सोच होती है कि पैसों से वे किसी भी प्रकार के विज्ञापन प्रकाशित करवा सकते हैं और ऐसी सोच व्यावसायिकता को अखबार में बढ़ावा देती है जो पत्रकारिता के ध्येय से एकदम विपरीत है। उनके सुझाव में सिर्फ लोक सेवा से सम्बंधित विज्ञापनों को ही  अखबार में स्थान देना चाहिए. यह सभी विचार गाँधी जी ने अपने अखबार इंडियन ओपिनियन में व्यक्त किये हैं।

वर्तमान राष्ट्रीय  परिदृश्य में गांधी जी के यह विचार एकदम विपरीत बैठते है. जो आज के मुख्य अखबार हैं उनमे हम विज्ञापन ज़्यादा और खबरें कम पाते हैं. जो खबरें रहती हैं वह भी किसी विचारधारा से प्रभावित, किसी व्यक्ति या समूह के हित से जुड़ी रहती हैं। ऐसे परिदृश्य में नैतिक मूल्यों को खोजना मुश्किल हो जाता है. मुख्य धारा के  पत्रकार या संपादक व्यावसायिकता की ओर अग्रसर हैं जिस से पत्रकारिता के नैतिक मूल्य जन सेवा का वे उल्लंघन कर रहे हैं अपने निजी फायदे के कारण और कुछ पूंजीवादी प्रबंधन और सत्ता के कारण।

नैतिकता से ही गांधी का अस्तित्व है और पूरा विश्व उनके उदाहरण देते नहीं थकता परन्तु जिस देश में वे जन्मे और उसे स्वतंत्र करवाया वहीँ उनके विचारों को लोग भूल चुके हैं और उन्हें भी एक दिवस से एक सप्ताह तक याद रखते हैं, उनका भी राजनीतिकरण होने लगा हैं.

गांधी जी ने अपना पूरा जीवन अहिंसा के प्रचार में लगाया और देश की वर्तमान स्थिति में हिंसा प्रतिदिन घटित हो रही है.  संयुक्त राष्ट्र मानव अधिकार की  वर्ल्ड रिपोर्ट 2018 के अनुसार नवंबर 2018 तक 18 ऐसे प्रकरण दर्ज हुए जिसमे भीड़ उन्माद, साम्प्रदायिकता,जातिवाद  के कारण हिंसा हुई और 8 लोगों की इनमे मृत्यु हो गयी. नेशनल क्राइम रिकॉर्ड ब्यूरो ने अभी तक सिर्फ 2016 तक के आकड़े ही प्रकाशित किये हैं इसलिए इनकी संख्या पर हम संतुष्ट नहीं हो सकते हैं.

लीगल सर्विस इंडिया के एक लेख के अनुसार पिछले वर्ष सिर्फ भीड़ उन्माद के कारण 24 लोगों की मौत हुई है और बढ़ते भीड़ उन्माद को लेकर जब कलाकारों ने अपनी चिंता और विरोध करते हुए  प्रधानमंत्री के नाम चिट्ठी लिखी तो उन्ही के खिलाफ एफ आई आर दर्ज हो गयी और मानहानि के प्रकरण चलने लगे. इन कलाकारों में लगभग देश   के 50 जाने  माने नाम हैं जिनमे रामचंद्र गुहा से लेकर गायिका शुभा मुद्गल और फिल्मकार अनुराग कश्यप, श्याम बेनेगल आदि के नाम शामिल हैं।

 अभिव्यक्ति की आज़ादी जिस पर पत्रकार ज़िंदा है और जो  एक नागरिक का अधिकार है उसी के मूल पर आज प्रश्न खड़े हो रहे हैं. महिलाओं के खिलाफ निरंतर आपराधिक मामले हो रहे हैं, हनी ट्रैप जैसे राज़ खुल रहे हैं जो देश के राजनैतिक प्रतिनिधित्व पर सवाल खड़े करते हैं. उम्मीदवार आपराधिक पृष्ठभूमि के रहते आगे आकर चुनाव में भाग ले रहें हैं और जन सेवा के विपरीत भ्रष्टाचार में लिप्त हैं. गांधी के नाम की पार्टी के नेता जैसे चिदंबरम हाल ही में हिरासत में लिए गए.

वर्तमान में साम्प्रदायिकता अपने चरम पर है, नेता खुद अलगाववाद की राजनीति कर मत प्राप्त कर रहें हैं.
गांधी जी ने जिस देश और नागरिक की कल्पना की थी उसके विपरीत पूरा समाज आज जी रहा है. जिनके लिए उन्होंने अहिंसा के द्वारा स्वतंत्रता दिलाई आज वही उस स्वतंत्रता का उपयोग कर हिंसात्मक हो गए हैं.