Boman Irani (born 2 December 1959) is an Indian actor, producer, filmmaker, photographer and voice artist who works in Hindi-language films in addition to Telugu, Tamil and Marathi films. One of the most popular character actors in Hindi cinema, he has featured in over 100 films. Irani is the recipient of a Filmfare Award and two IIFA Awards. Boman Irani has recently ventured into film production and advertising under his home banner, Irani Movietone.

Boman Irani
Irani in 2017
Born (1959-12-02) 2 December 1959 (age 65)
NationalityIndian
Occupations
  • Actor
  • voice artist
  • photographer
Years active2001–present
OrganizationIrani Moviestone[1]
Spouse
Zenobia Irani
(m. 1985)
Children2, including Kayoze Irani

Some of his notable works include Munna Bhai MBBS (2003), Veer-Zaara, Main Hoon Na, Lakshya (all 2004), No Entry, Waqt: The Race Against Time (both 2005), Lage Raho Munna Bhai, Don (both 2006), Khosla Ka Ghosla (2006), Heyy Babyy (2007), Kismat Konnection, Dostana (both 2008), 3 Idiots (2009), Housefull (2010), Don 2 (2011), Housefull 2, Cocktail (both 2012), Jolly LLB (2013), PK, Happy New Year (both 2014), Dilwale (2015), Housefull 3 (2016), Sanju (2018), Total Dhamaal (2019), 83 (2021), Uunchai (2022) and Dunki (2023).

Early life

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Irani was born on 2 December 1959, in Mumbai to an Irani Zoroastrian family. His father died 6 months before Irani was born. He has 3 elder sisters: Shirin, Shenaz and Roshan. Irani grew up with dyslexia in his childhood, which he eventually overcame.[2][3]

He finished his secondary schooling at St. Mary's School, after which he undertook a 2-year waiter course at Mithibai College in Mumbai. Irani also managed a bakery and namkeen shop in Mumbai that was run by his mother, Jerbanoo.[4] She died in June 2021 at 94.[5]

Career

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Photography career

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While working at the Taj Mahal Palace Hotel, he took photos of school cricket and football matches and sold them for 20 to 30 rupees, which he continued to do up until his marriage. [6] Irani continued to work as a photographer, and asked the then President of the Indian Boxing Association, Aspy Adajania if he could become the photographer for the World Boxing Championships in Mumbai. When Adajania initially rejected him, Irani agreed to work at his office in-return to cover the event. He continued to cover other state boxing matches, until he was finally appointed by Adajania as the official photographer for the Indian Boxing Association.

Irani would also go on to become the photographer for the Norwegian Boxing Team and photograph specific photos that were needed of Norwegian boxer, Ole Klemetsen. Irani took the photos with his Pentax K1000 camera.

Theatrical career (1981–1983)

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During his school days, Irani had a passion for acting, where he trained under acting coach Hansraj Siddhia from 1981 to 1983.

Irani was mentored by actor Alyque Padamsee.[7][8] Irani's appeared in many theater plays such as Roshni, which was played at the Regional Theater in Versova. He also acted in many TV serials such as Family Ties and Mahatma vs Gandhi, playing Gandhi after the role was turned down by actor Darshan Jariwala.[7]

Film career (2000–present)

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Irani moved to on-screen acting in 2000. He appeared in a number of commercials for Fanta, Ambuja Cements and CEAT Limited.[9]

His small but significant role in Darna Mana Hai earned him critical acclaim. The film was declared a hit, and he was seen in a segment featuring Saif Ali Khan. Irani gained attention for his role in the 2003 comedy Munna Bhai M.B.B.S.. His role as J. Asthana earned him a nomination for the Filmfare Award for Best Performance in a Comic Role. He would go on to star in its sequel Lage Raho Munna Bhai for which he received several IIFA award nominations. He also starred in the comedy-drama 3 Idiots opposite Aamir Khan which earned him the Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor and the Screen Award for Best Actor in a Negative Role.[citation needed]

In addition to acting, Irani has hosted the IIFA Awards on various occasions.[10] He also hosted the quiz show Bollywood Ka Boss. He has also appeared in Kaun Banega Crorepati with Sanjay Dutt, and has featured in various commercials.[11]

He launched his production house Irani Movietone in January 2019.[1] [12][13] In the same year, Irani played the role of Dr. Balraj Kapoor in the web series Masoom.[14]

Boman Irani is also a brand ambassador for Puri Oil,[15][16] Exotica,[17] Kent RO,[18] Ahead NGO,[19] and Saffola.[20] He is also on the Board of Advisors of India's International Movement to Unite Nations (I.I.M.U.N.).[21]

Ventures

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Irani Movietone

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Founded by Boman Irani in 2019, Irani Movietone is a film production cum creative house that specialises in providing advertising and branding solutions in all media formats. Sugar Cosmetics, JSW One, PMark Mustard Oil and Quench Botanics are some of the notable clients who advertising with Irani Movietone.

‘The Mehta Boys’ is its first feature film production directed by Boman Irani and written by Alexander Dinelaris and Boman Irani. The film will be released soon on Amazon Prime Video.

Spiral Bound

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In 2020, Irani began a masterclass named Spiral Bound with the aim of uniting amateur and professional screenwriters.[22] Screenwriter Alexander Dinelaris conducted the first workshop of Spiral Bound.[23] The masterclass continued in online sessions during the COVID-19 pandemic.[22][24][25][26][27] Guest speakers included playwright Anosh Irani and directors Rajkumar Hirani, Ram Madhvani, and Shakun Batra.[28] [23][29] Spiral Bound has completed more than 500 sessions.[30]

Filmography

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As actor

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Year Title Role Notes
2001 Everybody Says I'm Fine! Resomon Mittal
2002 Let's Talk Nikhil Sharma
2003 Darna Mana Hai Hotel Owner Story segment: No Smoking
Boom Diamond Dealer
Munna Bhai M.B.B.S. Dr. Jagdish Chandra "JC" Asthana
2004 Main Hoon Na Principal Yogesh Agarwal
Lakshya Sanjeev Shergill
Veer-Zaara Jahangir Hayaat Khan
2005 Page 3 Deepak Suri
Waqt: The Race Against Time Natham "Nattu" Singh
My Wife's Murder Inspector Tejpal Randhawa
No Entry Minister Pranab Kumar "PK" Gupta
Maine Gandhi Ko Nahin Mara Public Prosecutor Avinash Roy
Home Delivery: Aapko... Ghar Tak Michael Burnett / Santa Claus
Kal: Yesterday and Tomorrow Yashwant Dayal Singh
Bluffmaster Dr. Vijay Bhalerao
Mr Prime Minister Member of Parliament
Being Cyrus Farokh Sethna English film
2006 Shaadi Se Pehle Dr. Rustam Ali
Pyare Mohan Tony Dholakia
Yun Hota To Kya Hota DCP Amarkant Chauhan
Lage Raho Munna Bhai Lakhbir "Lucky" Singh
Khosla Ka Ghosla Kishan Khurana
Don – The Chase Begins Again Vardhan Makhija/P De Silva
2007 Eklavya: The Royal Guard Rana Jayavardhan Singh
Honeymoon Travels Pvt. Ltd. Oscar Fernandes
Heyy Babyy Bharat Sahni
Dhan Dhana Dhan Goal Tony Singh
2008 Love Story 2050 Professor Yatin Khanna
Kismat Konnection Rajiv Batra
Dostana Murali "M" Lokhande
Yuvvraaj Dr. Pravin Kant "PK" Banton
Sorry Bhai! Naveen Mathur
Maharathi Avvaldas "AD" Merchant
2009 Luck by Chance Deenaz Aziz
Little Zizou Boman Pressvala
99 Rahul Mehrotra
Kambakkht Ishq Dr. Sachin Mishra
Perfect Mismatch Naresh Patel
Fruit and Nut Maharaja Harry Holkar
3 Idiots Dr. Viru "Virus" Sahastrabuddhe
2010 Well Done Abba Arman/Rahman Ali
Hum Tum Aur Ghost Virendra Kapoor
Mirch Ashmit "Aasu" Hotmal
Jaane Kahan Se Aayi Hai Ali
Housefull Batuk Patel
2011 F.A.L.T.U Principal Karam Sharma
Game Om Prakash "OP" Ramsay
Love Breakups Zindagi Ranveer
Don 2: The King is Back Vardhan Makhija/P De Silva
2012 Ek Main Aur Ekk Tu Sushil Kapoor
Housefull 2 Batuk Patel
Tezz Sanjay Raina
Ferrari Ki Sawaari Behram Ardeshir Deboo
Cocktail Randhir "Randy" Kapoor
Shirin Farhad Ki Toh Nikal Padi Farhad Ahmed
Student of the Year Harikishan Sanon Cameo
2013 Jolly LLB Advocate Tejinder Rajpal
Attarintiki Daredi Raghunath "Raghu" Nandan Telugu film
2014 Youngistaan PM Dashrath Kaul Cameo
Bhoothnath Returns Bhushan Sharma / Bhausaheb
Happy New Year Tehamton "Tammy" Irani
PK Cherry Bajwa Special appearance
2015 Bengal Tiger CM Ashok Gajapathi Telugu film
Dilwale King
2016 Santa Banta Pvt Ltd Santeshwar Singh Solaid / Santa
Housefull 3 Batuk Patel
The Legend of Michael Mishra Full Pant (HP) / Older Half Pant
Ventilator Dr. Sairam Sukhranjan Marathi film
2017 FU: Friendship Unlimited Bulmukand
2018 Agnyaathavaasi Govind "Vinda" Bhargav Telugu film
Naa Peru Surya, Naa Illu India Colonel Sanjay Shrivastav
Parmanu: The Story of Pokhran Himanshu Shukla
Sanju Captain Homi Irani, Dr. Jagdish Chandra (JC) Asthana in an archive footage Cameo
Welcome to New York Gurwinder "Garry" Sandhu
Khajoor Pe Atke Abhishek Zaveri
2019 Total Dhamaal Commissioner Shamsher "Don" Singh
PM Narendra Modi Ratan Tata
Jhalki Kailash Satyarthi
Kaappaan Rajan Mahadev Tamil film
Made in China Dr. Shankar Vardhi
Drive Irfan Ali Mohammed
2020 Maska[31] Himself
2021 83[32] Farokh Engineer
2022 Runway 34[33] Nishant Suri
Jayeshbhai Jordaar Samarth Parekh
Uunchai[34] Javed Siddiqui
2023 Dunki Geetendar "Geetu" Gulati

As dubbing artist

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Awards

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Year Award Show Category Film Outcome
2004 Filmfare Awards Best Comedian Main Hoon Na Nominated
Munnabhai M.B.B.S. Nominated
IIFA Awards Best Actor in a Comic Role Yes
Screen Awards Best Comedian Yes
Zee Cine Awards Best Actor in a Comic Role Nominated
2006 IIFA Awards Best Performance in a Comic Role Waqt: The Race Against Time
2007 Filmfare Awards Best Villain Lage Raho Munnabhai Nominated
IIFA Awards Best Performance in a Negative Role Nominated
Global Indian Film Awards Best Actor in A Comic Role
Stardust Awards Best Performance in a Negative Role
2008 Producers Guild Film Awards Best Actor in a Comic Role Dostana
2010 Filmfare Awards Best Supporting Actor 3 Idiots Yes
Screen Awards Best Villain Yes
IIFA Awards Best Performance in a Negative Role Yes
2011 Zee Cine Awards Best Actor in a Comic Role Well Done Abba Yes
2012 IIFA Awards Best Performance in a Negative Role Don 2 Nominated
2014 Stardust Awards Best Supporting Actor Happy New Year
Bollywood Hungama Surfers' Choice Movie Awards Best Comedian PK

References

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  1. ^ a b Boman Irani [@bomanirani] (24 January 2019). "And the moment that we've been waiting for!!! With the love from one and all, introducing "Irani Movietone". @iranimovietone #IraniMovietone https://t.co/gXdwKmGTmq" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  2. ^ "Josh talks – Boman Irani". www.youtube.com. Josh talks. Archived from the original on 14 December 2006. Retrieved 30 June 2017.
  3. ^ Times of India. 2020 December 19. "Kaun Banega Crorepati 12: Amitabh Bachchan shares an incident from his school days when he lied of 'killing a snake' and got a beating from his school principal." Entertainment Times.
  4. ^ "INSPIRATIONAL LIFE AND QUOTES OF BOMAN IRANI: TRANSFORMATION FROM A DYSLEXIC, AND LISPIC CHILD TO AN ACCLAIMED BOLLYWOOD ACTOR!". Indian Speaker Bureau. 7 December 2020.
  5. ^ Maru, Vibha (9 June 2021). "Boman Irani mourns mother Jerbanoo Irani's death, says she will always be a star". India Today. Retrieved 9 June 2021.
  6. ^ "From waiter to a rising star: Boman Irani". The GenX Times. Archived from the original on 5 April 2017. Retrieved 5 April 2017.
  7. ^ a b "Boman Irani gets candid". Hindustan Times. Archived from the original on 21 January 2011. Retrieved 20 February 2011.
  8. ^ "The making of an actor". Bomanirani.com. Archived from the original on 23 August 2011. Retrieved 20 February 2011.
  9. ^ "Actor – Ad Films – India". Boman Irani. Archived from the original on 15 April 2011. Retrieved 20 February 2011.
  10. ^ "Riteish Deshmukh, Boman Irani are IIFA hosts again". Sify. Archived from the original on 6 March 2017. Retrieved 6 March 2017.
  11. ^ "Lowe Lintas highlights the 'sweet' side in the life of a diabetic for OneTouch – MullenLowe Lintas Group". 17 February 2015. Archived from the original on 16 April 2016.
  12. ^ "Boman Irani reveals he will finally make his directorial debut this year: I hope to start by mid-2022". 16 February 2022.
  13. ^ "Boman Irani all set to make directorial debut this year".
  14. ^ "Boman Irani On 'Masoom': "The Love That Has Come By For My Debut Is Overwhelming"". Koimoi. 20 June 2022. Retrieved 22 June 2022.
  15. ^ "FNB News – Boman Irani new brand ambassador of Puri Oil Mills' P Mark mustard oil | FNB News". www.fnbnews.com. Archived from the original on 3 June 2018. Retrieved 31 May 2018.
  16. ^ Ghosal, Sutanuka (2014). "Boman Irani signs up as brand ambassador of 'P' mark mustard oil". The Economic Times. Archived from the original on 2 October 2019. Retrieved 31 May 2018.
  17. ^ "Exotica signs Boman Irani as its brand ambassador -". www.realtynmore.com. 21 October 2015. Archived from the original on 3 June 2018. Retrieved 31 May 2018.
  18. ^ "Kent RO Systems signs Boman Irani as the brand ambassador". Business Standard. 24 January 2011. Archived from the original on 26 May 2018. Retrieved 31 May 2018.
  19. ^ "Boman Irani brand ambassador of NGO 'Ahead'". Archived from the original on 2 October 2019. Retrieved 31 May 2018.
  20. ^ "Saffola appoints Boman Irani as brand ambassador; launches new TVC". Indian Advertising Media & Marketing News – exchange4media. Retrieved 31 May 2018.
  21. ^ "I.I.M.U.N. || Board of Advisors". new.iimun.in. Retrieved 17 July 2021.
  22. ^ a b Pioneer, The. "Boman turns mentor". The Pioneer.
  23. ^ a b "Masterclass with Boman Irani". mumbaimirror.indiatimes.com. Archived from the original on 14 September 2020.
  24. ^ "Boman Irani clocks in 150 online screenwriting sessions of 'Spiral Bound'".
  25. ^ Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine: "Boman Irani opens up on how he came up with Spiral Bound Online Scriptwriting Sessions". YouTube. 6 July 2020.
  26. ^ "Boman Irani opens up on how he came up with Spiral Bound online scriptwriting sessions [Exclusive]". 3 July 2020.
  27. ^ Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine: "Boman Irani on the Art of Screenplay Writing". YouTube. 31 May 2020.
  28. ^ "Workplaces are still in the closet". mumbaimirror.indiatimes.com. Archived from the original on 15 September 2020.
  29. ^ "Boman Irani has a productive lockdown, completes over 50 online screenwriting sessions in quarantine". The Economic Times.
  30. ^ "Boman Irani decodes his characters, reveals how he prepared for 3 Idiots, Khosla Ka Ghosla: 'I find learning lines on set, odd'". 12 February 2022.
  31. ^ "'Maska' review: An interesting premise somehow manages to yield disastrous results". The New Indian Express. 28 March 2020. Archived from the original on 7 April 2020. Retrieved 14 June 2020.
  32. ^ "Boman Irani to enact the part of Farokh Engineer in #83TheFilm... Stars Ranveer Singh as #KapilDev... Directed by Kabir Khan... 10 April 2020 release. #Relive83". Taran Adarsh on Twitter. Archived from the original on 4 October 2020. Retrieved 18 February 2019.
  33. ^ "Boman Irani joins the cast of Ajay Devgn's Mayday". Bollywood Hungama. 29 January 2021. Retrieved 29 January 2021.
  34. ^ "Parineeti Chopra plays the role of a tourist guide in Nepal in Sooraj Barjatya's Uunchai; film shot at world's most DANGEROUS airport". Bollywood Hungama. 9 October 2021. Retrieved 9 October 2021.
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