The Unlikely Hero

"I do films, I do theatre; when I am doing neither, I spend time with my wife. I teach at National School of Drama, Delhi, and Film and Television Institute, Pune, and when I have more time to spare, I cook," says actor Adil Hussain. He is currently in Pondicherry, setting up five plays for the Festival of Plays for the Karmic Research Centre. Hussain's name doesn't ring a bell instantly. Although he has been acting for a while, doing TV shows, short films and theatre, it was only his cameo in Ishqiya and the role as the antagonist in Agent Vinod, that brought him to the fore. "I have my friend Jogi to blame. He was the one who insisted I audition for Ishqiya. Director Abhishek Chaubey called me soon after and told me that I would be playing Vidya Balan's husband in the film," he says.

Ishqiya gave Hussain an unexpected start in the film industry, by bringing in some great offers. Ang Lee, of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon and Brokeback Mountain fame, who had seen some of his previous work, contacted him for a role in Life of Pi. "When Ang Lee asks you to do his film, you just do it," he states. In Lee's movie, he plays the father of Pi, the film's central character, and is cast opposite Tabu. But it's Mira Nair's The Reluctant Fundamentalist that will feature him in a more dramatic role of Mustafa Fazil. His immediate release, however, is Gauri Shinde's English Vinglish where he plays Sridevi's husband.

"It's been a good journey so far. The fact that I am getting to work with so many renowned directors and talented actors just adds to the charm," he says. With fame comes more opportunity, and Hussain's case is no different. Next, he has Aditya Bhattacharya's Bombay's Most Wanted and an English film titled Sunrise.

... contd.

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