Boman Irani is an anomaly when it comes to age. He made his film acting debut at 42 and directed his first film at 65. Speaking of the screening of his directorial debut, The Mehta Boys, at Mumbai’s Regal Theatre, Irani says, “It was my Cinema Paradiso moment. I pointed out the seats where I sat and watched films such as Sound of Music, Von Ryan’s Express, Kramer vs. Kramer, Gandhi, and Anne of the Thousand Days. I gave a shout-out to Aslam Bhai, the projectionist who has been there for 53 years. It was so beautiful.” He says, his voice choked with a hint of emotion.
The Mehta Boys shows Boman Irani once again delivering a masterclass in acting as well as direction. A father-and-son drama that shows Irani as a now-retired typewriting instructor and explores his fractured relationship with his son, played by Avinash Tiwary. A father to two sons himself, Boman says, “When you look at it, on the face of it, it’s about any kind of relationship. In many ways, when you look at it, it’s about two human beings who are not communicating. I was looking at the basic flaws that come in the way of their happiness. The movie is about lost opportunities. It is structured in a way where the story within the story needs to be told.”
Known to wear many hats, including that of a photographer, Irani says the plan to direct and write the film was not sudden but rather an idea he had nurtured over the years. “I sharpened my skills, learnt over the years. It was not something I could have just done in a couple of months. It took a lot of me to write this because it is a simple story and that is why the most complicated to write. How do you hold people’s attention? It requires structure to escalate the action.”
Known for his collaborations with filmmakers such as Shyam Bengal on Well Done Abba, Rajkummar Hirani on Munna Bhai MBBS and 3 Idiots, and Dibakar Banerjee on Khosla Ka Ghosla, among many others, the actor confesses that though influenced by the work of the directors he had worked with, his first film was his own unique voice.
“One’s voice has to be fresh, even if it’s been seen before, and secondly, it should be a reflection. Even if the story is not personal, the film should be personal. If you don’t love the story, the audience won’t either; conviction is paramount. I collaborated with some of the best names in the business, and I observed them all, picking their best feature. I did take a leaf out of a lot of people’s books. But at the end of the day it has to be my voice.”
Irani credits ‘writing’ as having shaped his process as an actor, summing it up with a quote from playwright and screenwriter Aaron Sorkin, “One cannot have pages and pages of voice; you explore the character through the way he negotiates his character. It is very nice how the writing aspect has come to teach me about acting.”
Ask him what’s next and he good-humouredly answers he has no idea, saying there are several things in the pipeline since he is not the one to sit still.