by Tasavur Mushtaq
SRINAGAR: At the Covid-19 peak when Kashmir’s technology brigade succeeded in creating the first prototype of a ventilator last week, they named it Ruhdaar, something that has soul in it. The Urdu word became popular in Kashmir after Irrfan Khan played the character in Haider, Bollywood’s only reel that looked closer to reality in Kashmir.
When the engineers were discussing the name for their product, probably Irfaan was driven to the Mumbai hospital and put on a ventilator. On Wednesday when Khan breathed his last, one of the overseas mentor’s of the Ruhdaar project tweeted: “#IrrfanKhan is no more. Ruhdaar lives on! Rest in Peace.”
Irrfan Khan’s demise is a loss to the world of cinema and theatre. He will be remembered for his versatile performances across different mediums. My thoughts are with his family, friends and admirers. May his soul rest in peace.
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) April 29, 2020
Khan was a person with a soul not mere life. That is perhaps why he was being loved and respected, even in Kashmir, a place which has seen countless Bollywood masala hits portraying the place negatively.
No stereotypical looks, no six-pack, no fancy dance steps, no dynastic claim to a place in Bollywood. It was just talent & a breathtaking screen presence. #IrrfanKhan your courage to speak up when others chose silence was your biggest asset & will be missed the most. God speed.
— Omar Abdullah (@OmarAbdullah) April 29, 2020
After battling neuroendocrine tumour for around two years, the acclaimed actor Irrfan Khan finally lost his battle at the age of 53. According to reports, Khan was admitted to Mumbai’s Kokilaben Dhirubhai Ambani Hospital on Tuesday after he had developed colon infection. Incidentally, he lost his mother in Jaipur on Saturday, merely four days back.
The news of his death was shared on Twitter by filmmaker Shoojit Sircar. “My dear friend Irfaan. You fought and fought and fought. I will always be proud of you..we shall meet again..condolences to Sutapa and Babil..you too fought, Sutapa you gave everything possible in this fight. Peace and Om shanty. Irfaan Khan salute,” he wrote.
I’m sorry to hear about the passing of Irrfan Khan. A versatile & talented actor, he was a popular Indian brand ambassador on the global film & tv stage. He will be greatly missed. My condolences to his family, friends & fans at this time of grief.
— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) April 29, 2020
Born to Muslim parents, he hailed from the village of Tonk near Jaipur. After doing television for years, he found his break in Aasif Kapadia’s The Warrior. His career gradually progressed and later emerged as India’s most celebrated face in the West.
A dependable actor, his Slumdog Millionaire performance was memorable. He also was part of The Life of Pi, The Mighty Heart and Jurassic World, Salaam Mumbai, Maqbool, Paan Singh Tomar, The Lunchbox, Gunday, Piku, Talvar, and Haider– the movie based on Kashmir.
As we remember the great actor Irrfan Khan @irrfank whom we lost this morning, watch his extraordinary performance in Anup Singh’s Qissa, one of the very best films about the Partition of India and its lingering aftermath. https://t.co/xliivwFrx4
— Basharat Peer (@BasharatPeer) April 29, 2020
The tributes for the deceased actor of decades pour in from all sides. The noted journalist Rajdeep Sardesai has tweeted, “Irrfan Khan..Bande mei dum tha, on and off-screen…RIP.”
Kashmir’s Haider
Directed by Vishal Bhardwaj, Haider was an Indian adaptation of Hamlet. In the movie, Haider, a student returns home to Srinagar from Aligarh in the 1990s to find that his father has disappeared and his mother is in a new relationship with his uncle. Regarding the film, the director is quoted to have said, “I’m also an Indian, I’m also a patriot, I also love my nation. So I won’t do anything which is anti-national. But what is anti-human, I will definitely comment on it,” he said.
The moment Irrfan Sahib appeared on screen in Haider. How he transformed the words in the screenplay to scorching cinema.. https://t.co/tEGyzl9EZN
— Basharat Peer (@BasharatPeer) April 29, 2020
Ironically, a young boy, Saqib Bilal who did a cameo in film Haider later turned militant. He was shot dead in an 18-hour gunbattle in Mujgund on the outskirts of Srinagar on December 9, 2018. As reported in 2018, Saqib had cleared his class 10th with a distinction and was studying chemistry and maths in Class 11. He had an interest in acting and had done a mall role in Haider. He appeared in two brief shots, once as a ‘chocolate boy’ and in another, he acted of ‘surviving a violent incident in a bus.’
#IrrfanKhan is no more
Ruhdaar lives on!
Rest in Peace— Shabir Hassan (@shabirhsn) April 29, 2020
The film Haider was written by Bhardwaj with author and journalist Basharat Peer. “I strongly feel that Kashmir has been the biggest tragedy of modern Indian history and no film has been made to capture the real tragedy of what has been going on there for the last 25 years. I began to read Basharat’s (Peer) book (Curfewed Nights) with Hamlet in mind and by the time I finished it I had decided to collaborate with him,” Bhardwaj had said after its launch.
IUST Creates Ruhdaar, A Kashmir Made Low-Cost Frugal Ventilator