Paan Singh Tomar: How Irrfan Khan Made A Footnote In Indian Sports Larger Than Life
News
oi-Swikriti Srivastava
By P T I
Of
the
many
characters
he
brought
alive
with
just
a
lopsided
grin
or
his
famously
intense
gaze,
Irrfan
Khan's
portrayal
of
athlete-turned-bandit
Paan
Singh
Tomar
will
always
count
among
his
most
compelling
performances,
immortalising
a
man
who
was
just
a
footnote
in
Indian
sports
till
then.
Irrfan
breathed
his
last
in
Mumbai,
gone
too
soon
at
54
after
battling
a
rare
cancer
that
kept
him
away
from
public
eye
ever
since
the
diagnosis
in
2018.
In
his
awe-inspiring
body
of
work
lies
this
2012
gem
of
a
film
that
made
Tomar
a
household
name
a
good
31
years
after
he
was
shot
dead
by
the
police
in
an
encounter
which
reportedly
lasted
several
hours.
The
performance
fetched
Irrfan
a
national
award
and
all-round
acclaim
for
the
sheer
simplicity
with
which
he
essayed
the
role
of
a
"beehad
ka
baaghi",
who
started
as
an
ernest
Subedar
in
Army
with
a
talent
for
running.
Tomar
was
a
seven-time
national
champion
in
steeplechase,
a
3000m
obstacle
race
which
includes
water
jumps.
He
even
represented
India
in
the
1958
Asian
Games
in
Tokyo
before
picking
up
the
gun
owing
to
a
family
land
dispute
at
his
native
village
of
Bhidosa
in
Madhya
Pradesh's
Chambal
region
after
retiring
from
the
army
in
1977.
The
fascinating
story
of
this
man
became
a
trending
google
search
after
the
trailer
went
on
air
with
Irrfan's
Tomar,
his
gaze
fixed
at
a
journalist
interviewing
him,
mouthing
that
iconic
dialogue
'beehad
mein
baaghi
hote
hain,
dacait
milte
hain
Parliament
mein'.
What
was
striking
about
the
film
is
that
it
chose
to
tell
a
story
which
was
not
about
an
obstacle-filled
inspiring
journey
culminating
into
an
emotional
podium
finish
like
Dangal,
Bhaag
or
Chak
De!
India."
It
was
a
gut-wrenching
tale
of
a
man
who
could
have
been
so
much
more
but
for
the
violent
path
he
chose
due
to
his
circumstances
and
the
apathetic
administrative
system
that
failed
him.
While
promoting
the
film,
Irrfan
had
told
'Time' magazine
that
he
was
drawn
to
the
story
because
"it
follows
the
hero
once
he
has
been
forgotten".
Tomar
was
49
when
he
died.
Irrfan
was
45
by
the
time
the
film
released.
The
actor,
according
to
a
book
by
author
Aseem
Chhabra-
Irrfan
Khan:
The
Man,
The
Dreamer,
The
Star-,
took
a
50
per
cent
pay
cut
along
with
the
rest
of
the
film's
team
to
ensure
that
the
budget
could
be
kept
in
control.
He
even
insisted
on
running
the
steeplechase
races
himself
even
though
director
Tigmanshu
Dhulia
had
offered
the
body
double
option.
It
was
a
story
that
resonated
with
masses
and
classes
equally,
becoming
a
sleeper
hit
that
year.
Tomar
never
got
the
recognition
that
he
perhaps
merited
and
which
could
have
saved
him
from
going
down
the
path
of
self-destruction
but
Irrfan
ensured
that
he
wouldn't
be
forgotten
either.
At
one
point
in
the
film
Irrfan's
Tomar
expresses
his
frustration
by
saying,
"desh
ke
liye
daude
to
kisi
ne
na
pucha,
ab
baaghi
ban
gaye
to
sab
ehi
naam
jap
rahe
Paan
Singh
Tomar."
That
poignant
lament
perhaps
typified
Tomar's
existence
that
died
with
a
bounty
of
Rs
10,000
on
his
head.