Nawazuddin Siddiqui has some fond memories with Irrfan while shooting The Lunchbox. The film released on September 20, 2013. The Sacred Games actor revealed that his relationship with Irrfan goes back to the Slumdog Millionaire days when the late actor made him meet director Danny Boyle even without an appointment. Nawazuddin called Irrfan his older brother.

NAWAZUDDIN SIDDIQUI CALLS IRRFAN HIS OLDER BROTHER

Irrfan and Nawazuddin Siddiqui worked together in films such as The Lunchbox and Paan Singh Tomar. They had known each other since their struggling days and reportedly even stayed together in a one-room apartment during that time. However, there had been rumours of a rift between the two. Many reports claimed that the two actors were at loggerheads during the shoot of The Lunchbox. In a new interview with ETimes, Nawazuddin Siddiqui rubbished the rumours and called Irrfan ‘bhai’.

Nawazuddin said, “Irrfan bhai was like my older brother and I have several precious memories of working with him, even before The Luncbox happened. When the casting for Slumdog Millionaire was going on, he took me to meet Danny Boyle without an appointment. Imagine walking in to meet such a big director without any prior notice. Finally, both of us were cast in the movie, but unfortunately, when the shoot began, I was busy with another movie. So, my part was then offered to another actor. I have learned a lot from Irrfan bhai… even how to meet a big Hollywood director without an appointment (laughs).”

NAWAZUDDIN SHARED MEMORY WITH IRRFAN FROM THE LUNCHBOX

While Nawazuddin Siddiqui has many precious memories with Irrfan, he shared a special one with the late actor from The Lunchbox shoot. He said, “For me, one of the best experiences was to shoot for the film in a packed train. An entire compartment was booked for our shoot, Irrfan bhai and I had got into our get-up for the movie and sat between the locals, common people. No one really realised but everyone just perfectly synced into our scene; that is the beauty of a local train. Even those who were not in our unit became a part of The Lunchbox.”

Apart from Irrfan and Nawazuddin Siddiqui, The Lunchbox stars Nimrat Kaur in the lead role. The film is directed by Ritesh Batra.