Nawazuddin:
Irrfan
Bhai
Was
Like
An
Elder
Brother
While
speaking
to
Filmfare,
Nawazuddin
said,
"Irrfan
Bhai
was
my
mentor.
He
was
like
an
elder
brother,
and
he
remained
one
till
the
end.
People
seem
to
think
we
came
together
for
The
Lunchbox.
But
our
relationship
went
back
a
long
way.
In
2000
Irrfan
Bhai
directed
me
in
an
hour-long
film
titled
Alvida.
It
is
one
of
my
best
films.
I
wonder
why
he
never
directed
after
that.
Because,
Irrfan
Bhai
had
the
clear-headed
focus
of
a
born
director."
‘During
The
Lunchbox
We
Were
Made
Out
To
Be
Rivals”
He
further
added,
"We
also
worked
together
in
a
short
film
called
Bypass
which
had
Asif
Kapadia
(who
directed
Irrfan
Bhai
in
Warrior)
as
a
producer,
and
then
in
2013
in
a
film
called
Meridian
Line.
Working
with
Irrfan
Bhai
was
always
a
pleasure.
I
considered
him
my
mentor,
my
elder
brother.
This
relationship
of
respect
remained
unchanged
until
his
death;
although
during
The
Lunchbox
we
were
made
out
to
be
rivals."
‘It
Wasn’t
Right
To
Be
Pitched
Against
Him
As
A
Rival’
Nawazuddin
also
asserted
that
he
always
looked
up
to
Irrfan
as
a
mentor.
"To
be
pitched
against
him
as
a
rival
was
not
right.
Luckily
it
didn't
affect
our
personal
equation.
I
continued
to
be
in
touch
with
him
during
his
illness."
Nawazuddin
On
Irrfan’s
Final
Goodbye
Speaking
of
his
sudden
demise,
Nawazuddin
said
that
his
end
has
left
him
shocked
and
thinking
about
the
uncertainty
of
life.
He
further
said
that
he
will
always
cherish
Irrfan
as
a
human
being
and
an
actor.
"He
was
beyond
brilliant
in
Haasil,
The
Namesake
and
Maqbool.
He
never
seemed
to
act.
You
never
caught
him
out
acting.
He
had
such
a
long
way
to
go.
Why
did
this
have
to
happen
to
him?
I've
seen
my
sister
suffer
and
die
of
cancer.
I
know
what
it
does
to
the
entire
family.
I
wish
Irrfan
Bhai
peace
in
heaven
and
his
family
the
strength
to
carry
on.
I
will
miss
him,"
concluded
Siddiqui
with
a
heavy
heart.