Actor Irrfan Khan has passed away at the age of 53 while battling a colon infection on 29 April 2020. He died in the presence of his family; wife Sutapa Sikdar and two sons.
Sahabzade Irfan Ali Khan was born on 7 January 1967 in Jaipur, Rajasthan, India. He was an Indian actor and producer, known for his work predominantly in Hindi cinema, in addition to American and British films.
Early Life
Khan was born in Rajasthan, into a Muslim family. Irfan’s mother, Saeeda Begum Khan, and his father, the late Yaseen Ali Khan, came from the village of Khajuriya near Tonk District and ran a tire shop.
Irrfan was good at cricket and later selected for the CK Nayudu tournament for aspiring players under the age of 23 as a stepping stone to first-class cricket in India. However, he could not appear for the tournament due to a lack of money.
Khan completed his Master of Arts in Jaipur before he got a scholarship to study acting at the National School of Drama (NSD)in 1984 in New Delhi.
After arriving in Mumbai, he worked as an air conditioner mechanic, and during working as an AC repairman, he visited the house of superstar Rajesh Khanna to repair his AC.
Irrfan Khan married writer and fellow NSD graduate, a Hindu brahmin named Sutapa Sikdar, on 23 February 1995. They have two sons named; Ayaan Khan and Babil Khan. Sutapa is an Indian film producer, dialogue writer, and screenwriter.
Career
After graduating in 1987, Irfan Khan moved to Mumbai, where he appeared in many television series such as Chanakya, Sara Jahan Hamara, Bharat Ek Khoj, Banegi Apni Baat, Chandrakanta, Shrikant (Doordarshan) and Star Bestsellers (Star Plus), Sparsh, etc.
He was the main villain and played the role of a psycho serial killer in a series called Darr (aired on Star Plus), opposite Kay Kay Menon. He also performed the role of the famous Urdu unprecedented poet and Indian Marxist political activist, Makhdoom Mohiuddin, in Kahkashan, produced by Ali Sardar Jafri.
He also performed in a series called Bhanvar (broadcast on SET India) in two episodes. In one episode, he played the role of a thug who somehow landed in court, where he introduced himself as a lawyer.
The theater and television kept him afloat until Mira Nair offered him a cameo in Salaam Bombay (1988), although his role was edited in the final film.
In the 1990s, he performed in the critically acclaimed film Ek Doctor Ki Maut and Such a Long Journey (1998) and in other films that went unnoticed.
After many failed films, things changed when London-based director Asif Kapadia gave him the lead in a historical film, The Warrior, which is completed in 11 weeks on locations in Himachal Pradesh and Rajasthan. In 2001, The Warrior opened into international film festivals, making Irrfan Khan a face known worldwide.
In 2003, he starred in Road to Ladakh short film by the Indian-born screenwriter and director, Asvin Kumar. After received rave reviews at international festivals, the film became a feature film, again starring Irrfan Khan. That same year he played the lead role in the critically acclaimed Maqbool, an adaptation of Shakespeare’s Macbeth.
Her first significant lead role in Bollywood came in 2005 with the movie Rog. After that, he appeared in several films, either playing the lead role or a minor role as a villain. He won the Filmfare Best Villain Award in 2004 for his role in the movie Haasil.
In 2007, he performed in the blockbusters Metro, for which he received the Filmfare Best Supporting Actor Award, and The Namesake, which was a hit abroad. Irrfan’s chemistry with Konkana Sen in Metro was one of the highlights of the multi-starer movie. His appearance closely followed them in the international films A Mighty Heart and The Darjeeling Limited.
Even after becoming a successful Bollywood actor, he has not severed his ties to television. He used to put on a show ‘Mano Ya Na Mano’ (aired on Star One). He had organized another program called “Kya Kahen” which was in the similar vein of Mano Ya Na Mano based on superstition and extrasensory perception.
In 2008, he appeared as a narrator in an Arts Alliance production, id – Identity of the Soul. The artists toured around the world, where tens of thousands attended the event as they visited the West Bank. Irrfan also played the role of a police inspector in the film Slumdog Millionaire released in 2008, for which he and the movie cast won the Screen Actors Guild Award for the excellent performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture.
He rose to fame with his portrayal of Paan Singh Tomar in the acclaimed biographical sports drama Paan Singh Tomar (2011), which won him the National Film Award for Best Actor and a Filmfare Critics Award for Best Actor.
His performance in the BAFTA-nominated romance The Lunchbox (2013) earned him universal recognition from critics and audiences alike. Khan went on to appear in the commercially successful and critical films Gunday (2014), Haider (2014), Talvar (2015), and Piku (2015).
His highest-grossing Hindi release came with the critically praised comedy-drama Hindi Medium (2017), which became a nightly blockbuster in India and China, which is among the highest-grossing Indian films of all time and earned it praise for its acting, winning various awards, including the Filmfare Award for Best Actor.
He was awarded the Padma Shri, India’s fourth-highest civilian honor for his contribution to the field of arts.
International recognition
Worldwide, Khan has worked in several international movies such as The Warrior (2001), The Namesake (2006), The Darjeeling Limited (2007), the Oscar-winning film Slumdog Millionaire (2008), New York and I Love You (2009), The Amazing Spider-Man (2012), Life of Pi (2012), Jurassic World (2015) and Inferno (2016). As of 2017, his films grossed $ 3.643 billion at the global box office.
Cause of Death
Irrfan Khan was diagnosed with an unknown illness in February 2018. The actor ended the speculation and said he was suffering from a neuroendocrine tumor – a rare form of cancer that can target different parts of the body via his official Twitter handle. In the same year, Irrfan Khan traveled to London for treatment.
On April 28, 2020, Irrfan Khan was taken to the Kokilaben Dhirubhai Ambani Hospital in Mumbai, where he was treated for colon infection. On April 29, 2020, Irrfan Khan died at the age of 53, four days after his mother’s death in Jaipur.
In a statement, a spokesperson said:
‘I trust, I have surrendered’; These were some of the many words that Irrfan expressed in a heartfelt note he wrote in 2018 opening up about his fight with cancer. And a man of few words and an actor of silent expressions with his deep eyes and his memorable actions on screen.
It’s saddening that this day, we have to bring forward the news of him passing away. Irrfan was a strong soul, someone who fought till the very end and always inspired everyone who came close to him.
Irrfan Khan Biography | |
|---|---|
| Name | Irrfan Khan or Irrfan |
| Birth Name | Sahabzade Irfan Ali Khan |
| Birth Date | January 7, 1967 |
| Age | 53 Years (In 2020) |
| Death | April 29, 2020 |
| Birth Place | Jaipur, Rajasthan, India |
| Nationality | Indian |
| Profession | Actor, Producer |
| Religion | Islam |
| Sun sign | Capricorn |
| Hobbies | Playing Cricket, Reading |
Irrfan Khan Height, Weight and Body Measurement | |
 | |
| Height | 5’ 10” (179 cm) Approx |
| Weight | 75 kg (165.3 lbs/Pound) Approx |
| Chest Size | 41 Inches |
| Waist Size | 33 Inches |
| Biceps Size | 12 Inches |
| Shoe Size | 8 (US) |
| Hair Color | Black |
| Eye Color | Dark Brown |
| Body Type | Average |
| Sexual Orientation | Straight |
Qualification/Education | |
| School | Not known |
| College/University | National School of Drama (NSD), New Delhi |
| Qualification | M.A. and Diploma in Dramatic Arts |
Family | |
| Father | Yaseen Ali Khan |
| Mother | Saeeda Begum Khan |
| Sister | Rukhsana Begum |
| Brother | Salman Khan, Imran Khan |
Irrfan Khan Affairs (Relationship Status) | |
 | |
| What was Irrfan Khan’s marital status? (single, engaged, married or divorced) | Married |
| How many children did Irrfan Khan have? | Two Sons (Ayaan Khan, Babil Khan) |
| Is Irrfan Khan Gay? | No |
| Who was Irrfan Khan’s wife? | Sutapa Sikdar |
Favorite Things | |
| Actor | Philip Seymour Hoffman, Robert De Niro, Al Pacino, Marlon Brando |
| Film | The Men (1950) |
| Color | Black |
| Sport | Cricket |
| Restaurant | Grand-Hotel du Cap-Ferrat in France |
Irrfan Khan Net Worth and Salary
Irrfan Khan is one of the finest actors in Indian cinema and also performed in international movies. After gaining popularity and success, Irrfan Khan likes to charge around 12-15 Crores Indian rupees (1.6-2 million USD) per movie as salary. Irrfan Khan’s estimated net worth is approximately $50 million at the time of his death.
Trivia: Fast Facts about Irrfan Khan
- In his early 20’s he was selected for the CK Nayudu Tournament. However, he could not turn up for the tournament owing to a lack of funds.
- Wife Sutapa is a dialogue writer in films.
- He was awarded the Padma Shri, India’s fourth-highest civilian honor for his contribution to the field of arts.
- The first Bollywood actor to star in two films that won the Academy Award for Best Director (Slumdog Millionaire (2008) and Life of Pi (2012)). Both films also won the Academy Award for Best Cinematography and Best Original Score.
- Two of the films that he has worked on (Slumdog Millionaire and Life of Pi) collectively won 12 Oscars.
- When he arrived in Bombay, he worked as an air conditioner repairman. One of the first houses he visited to repair an air conditioner was the house of superstar Rajesh Khanna.