“I believe I have surrendered”: Irrfan Khan passes away at 53 after prolonged illness

Actor Irrfan Khan passes away at 53. He was admitted to Mumbai’s Kokilaben Dhirubhai Ambani Hospital on Tuesday

He was admitted to Mumbai’s Kokilaben Dhirubhai Ambani Hospital on Tuesday. He was kept under observation for colon infection. The actor in 2018 had announced that he’d been diagnosed with a neuroendocrine tumor.

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 shanti. Irfaan Khan salute,” he wrote.

Reacting to the news, senior film critic Bharti Dubey said, “He was very introvert, did not talk to media much, though responded on emails. He wrote poetry too and spoke very less whenever he had to talk to media.”

The "Piku" actor lost his 95-year-old mother Saeeda Begum in Jaipur just three days ago and could not attend the funeral because of the nationwide lockdown to contain the spread of coronavirus.

In early 2018, Irrfan had revealed his neuroendocrine tumour diagnosis. The actor stayed away from the public eye as he underwent treatment in the UK.

After his return in 2019, he shot for "Angrezi Medium", the sequel to his 2017 hit "Hindi Medium".

However, his health condition prevented him from promoting the movie, which hit the theatres in March just before the lockdown that began on March 25.

Official statement on Irrfan Khan’s passing away

“I trust, I have surrendered”; These were the 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. After having been struck by lightning in 2018 with the news of arare cancer, he took life soon after as it came and he fought the many battles that came with it. Surrounded by his love, his family for whom he most cared about, he left for heavenly abode, leaving behind truly a legacy of his own. We all pray and hope that he is at peace. And to resonate and part with his words he had said, “As if I was tasting life for the first time, the magical side of it”.