On Naseeruddin Shah’s birthday we look at the three outstanding yet little heard of performances from his career

Whenever there’s a discussion on his early life, Naseeruddin Shah inevitably directs the conversation to the fact that he wasn’t good at anything as a child till he discovered his love for creative arts like drama. And given his contributions over the years, one does feel that the performer was indeed born to act.

From portraying the angry Albert Pinto in the middle of his identity wrangling to playing the complicated Gulfam Hassan who transforms his pains towards an evil end, the actor has done it all. There have also been those roles where the actor has delivered stupendous performances but received little recognition at the time or even afterward.

We take a look at three such performances from the actor’s four decade plus career.

Naseeruddin Shah was already an established name in the parallel cinema scene when he featured in Vidhu Vinod Chopra’s Khamosh (1986). The movie which boasted of a talented star cast featuring Sushma Seth, Amol Palekar, Shabana Azmi, and Pankaj Kapur, was an arresting whodunit with broader themes that critiqued the misogynistic culture prevalent in the film industry (brilliantly shown through the male gaze seen in the horrific ‘rape scene’ shot in the fictional film inside the movie), and the darker side of the ultra-competitive film industry.

Naseeruddin’s Rajeev Bakshi is introduced to us as a CID officer, who does a neat job of investigating Soni’s murder. Later revelations show that he is not with the investigating authorities but driven by a personal motivation for vengeance. The actor is excellent in this transition: he starts as a cold and collected investigator whose methodical work strikes unease in the hearts of those who have shady connections to the crime, and after his cover is blown, becomes a relentless force whose search for justice is informed by his grief of losing a loved one.

When he is confronted by the police, Naseeruddin builds Rajeev Bakshi as a logical individual who convinces the higher authorities that there’s something amiss, while also showing his frustration at the shoddy investigative work done. In the middle of this, the versatile actor lets out just a little moment of lamentation which helps one understand the character’s plight in a role where Bakshi rarely leaves his orderly persona.

Another of his underrated works includes Ribhu Dasgupta’s Michael (2011), where he plays the titular role. The psychological thriller deals with the insecurities of ageing and related health issues while also capturing the perspective of a flawed individual as he deals against economic uncertainties and looks to outdo the criminal elements at their own game.

In the movie, we get to see Naseeruddin delve into the psyche of a defeated man racing against time.

Michael starts as a by-the-book cop but the death of an innocent in a police action strips him of his honour and income. His issues are compounded by failing vision and death threats against his son.

Constantly losing his physical and mental well-being, the disillusioned man becomes an amoral player in the market of movie pirating. He tries to only look for himself, even cheating his partner out of a rightful share in their illegal enterprise.

Unfortunately, he also fails to cultivate a meaningful relationship with anyone in the movie, including his son. Naseeruddin portrays Michael as a man always on the run, even from his fears and failures. After he’s informed of the fact that he has progressive myopia, Michael practices being blind to get accustomed to his inevitable future. Even when under immense stress, he refuses to show it on the outside.

However, when his bathroom bulb fuses leaving him alone in the dark, he panics under the dread that his vision is finally gone. The scene sees Michael’s anxieties come out and confront him, as he wrestles against the trepidation of having lost his eyesight. The viewer is left with Naseeruddin’s failing voice struggling against the darkness, and his gasps exhibiting the pain of loneliness. One is left with the feeling of being trapped in a place with no exit.

The trappings that Shiv Natraj suffers through aren’t as obvious in Anu Menon’s Waiting (2015). The drama sees two individuals of widely different backgrounds connect. The movie depicts various stages of grief and how people come to terms with their uncertain futures.

Shiv is introduced as a well-informed if cynical attendant to his wife, who has been in a coma for the last eight months. He helps Tara (Kalki Koechlin) overcome her initial fears after her husband’s accident and becomes her mentor, having already been through what she’s experiencing now.

However, the movie shows that all’s not well with Shiv. He’s ready to discard the doctor’s opinions and make his wife suffer for selfish reasons.

Naseeruddin brings to life Shiv’s delusional beliefs in an argument with Tara, where neither of them is ready to take their foot off the pedal when discussing how her husband’s case is to be handled. While Tara is scared of what quality of life he might have to lead, Shiv cannot think about anything other than bringing him back to consciousness.

This is a reflection of his inner fears around what might happen to his wife should life support systems be withdrawn from her. From being Tara’s pillar of support, he becomes her biggest critic in a matter of seconds.

We realize that throughout the film Shiv has only been dealing with the fear of his life never being the same when his wife is gone forever. Eventually, he does come to terms with the reality and lets his wife take a call for herself.

In these three extensively different roles from these little-known features, the veteran shows his range and temperament as an actor.

Divy Tripathi is an independent journalist who writes about movies and cricket. He also tries his hand at fiction from time to time.

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