My father gave his life trying to elevate art of acting in adverse conditions: Irrfan's son Babil
Mumbai: Actor Irrfan Khan's son Babil on Wednesday said he doesn't like the political debates around Sushant Singh Rajput's death, but there is now a wind of change in cinema, something his father kept fighting for throughout his life.
Babil said his father constantly tried to challenge the existing ecosystem in the Hindi film industry, but he would be defeated at the box office by hunks with six-pack abs delivering formulaic dialogues.
Irrfan passed away in April at the age of 54 following his battle with a rare form of cancer.
"My father gave his life trying to elevate the art of acting in the adverse conditions of noughties Bollywood and alas, for almost all of his journey, was defeated in the box office by hunks with six-pack abs delivering theatrical one-liners and defying the laws of physics and reality," Babil wrote in a long Instagram post recalling his father's struggle.
"Photoshopped item songs, just blatant sexism and same-old conventional representations of patriarchy (and you must understand, to be defeated at the box office means that majority of the investment in Bollywood would be going to the winners, engulfing us in a vicious circle)," he added.
The cinema student said the mainstream films work because the audience want and enjoy movies that only offer entertainment.
"All we sought was entertainment and safety of thought, so afraid to have our delicate illusion of reality shattered, so unaccepting of any shift in perception.
"All effort to explore the potential of cinema and its implications on humanity and existentialism was at best kept by the sidelines," he added.
Recalling the days before he went to a film school in London, Babil said his father "warned" him that he would have to prove himself there as Bollywood is "seldom respected in world cinema".
He said Irrfan had asked him to inform others about Indian cinema that's beyond the control of Bollywood.
At his film school, the aspiring artiste said, he found that Bollywood was not respected and people had no awareness of Indian cinema of the 1960s and 1990s.
"There was literally one single lecture in the world cinema segment about Indian cinema called 'Bollywood and Beyond', that too gone through in a class full of chuckles.
"It was tough to even get a sensible conversation about the real Indian cinema of Satyajit Ray and K Asif going. You know why that is? Because we, as the Indian audience, refused to evolve."
Babil said today he feels there is a change, a "new fragrance in the wind" with a new generation searching for meaning.
Referring to how the conversations after Rajput's death have been about starting anew, he hoped it leads to something positive.
"We must stand our ground, not let this thirst for a deeper meaning be repressed again... Although I resent that Sushant's demise has now become a fluster of political debates, but if a positive change is manifesting, in the way of the Taoist, we embrace it (sic)."
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Brazil's Ancelotti raises doubts about whether Neymar will reach the 2026 World Cup
Sao Paulo (AP): Brazil coach Carlo Ancelotti raised doubts about whether Neymar will be in his squad for the 2026 World Cup. The Italian has yet to pick the former captain since he took over in May.
“If Neymar deserves to be (in the squad), if he is, well, better than others, he will play in the World Cup and that's it. (But) I don't have debts to anyone,” Ancelotti said at a press conference in Washington on Friday following the draw.
Brazil is in Group C with Morocco, Haiti and Scotland.
“If we speak about Neymar, we have to speak about other players,” Ancelotti added. “We have to think about Brazil with or without Neymar, with or without other players. Our final list we will make after the FIFA fixtures in March.”
The 33-year-old Neymar has never fully recovered from a torn ACL in October 2023 during a World Cup qualifier against Uruguay. But he's been key for Santos in its fight to avoid relegation in the Brazilian championship.
On Wednesday, he scored a hat trick for Santos despite a muscular injury. He is expected to play again on Sunday against Cruzeiro.
Ancelotti said Brazil does not have a “referential player” at the moment, a tag for the most valuable player that Neymar has mainly worn since the 2014 home World Cup.
“We have one of the world's best goalkeepers, some of the best defenders, top midfielders and some players up front. I don't want players who want to be the best in the world, I want players who want to win the World Cup,” Ancelotti said.
Asked about his team's group, Ancelotti said Brazil can top it.
“We can win all three matches, our idea is very clear. We need to be competitive during the entire World Cup. Our goal is to play in the final and for that to happen you need to face very strong teams anyway.”
Brazil won the last of its five World Cup trophies in 2002.
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