‘Irrfan Khan was in a constant internal struggle’: Piyush Mishra says today’s generation of actors thinks going to the gym is enough

He continued, “Irrfan Khan ko dekh ke mujhe tajjub hua karta tha, woh kaise ladta tha apne aap se. Ke acting asaani se toh hogi nahi, acting mushkil se hi hogi. Lagatar joonjta rehta tha. Ek saal junior tha mujhse. Mera bhi yehi haal tha, ke itni asaani se yeh cheez milegi nahi. Ab inhe lagta hai ke zara gym kar liya, gaana gaa liya toh trained ho gaye. Jaldi lapakna chahte hain, aur jaldi lapakne ke chah achi nahi hai, pareshaani karegi (I was awestruck by Irrfan. He used to be in a constant struggle with himself. He knew that becoming a better actor would take time and effort. He was my junior by a year. I was like that too. I knew it wouldn’t come easy. But today’s generation thinks that going to the gym and singing equals training. They want everything fast, but this will hurt them in the future).”

He said that any good skill requires time. Some people get what they want immediately, he said, and they fail to recognise its value. They become stars very quickly, but later fizzle out. Others work hard for their success, which is why they value it more, he said.

Irrfan was regarded as one of the most talented actors of his generation. He made a mark for himself not only in India, but also abroad. He died in 2020 after a two-year battle with cancer. He worked with Piyush Mishra in the film Maqbool.