Actress Tabu made me feel comfortable in the love scene

Irrfan Khan simply loves challenging roles. The internationally acclaimed Bollywood actor has chosen to play a gay character in Mira Nair�s AIDS film The Migration.

In fact, Irrfan refused a staid role in the film in order to play a homosexual. "She offered me the part of the sweet, simple and straight farmer that Shiney Ahuja finally did. I saw no challenge in that. Give me roles that aren�t fake," Irrfan, who plays an unhappily married man in a secret anguished affair with another in the film, said.

Another challenging role Irrfan loved playing was of a Bengali in Mira Nair�s The Namesake. "Ashok Ganguly in The Namesake gave me a chance to embrace a beautiful new vision. I could never be this person. Ashok gave me a chance to live a unique life," he added.

After Vishal Bharadwaj�s Maqbool Irrfan shared stunning chemistry with Tabu in the The Namesake. Their lovemaking scene in the film had audiences gasping in disbelief.

"I can�t say Tabu and I meet after hours, but I must say Tabu is a very special person and actress. It takes a lot for her to open up. She never lies in her performances. I remember during Maqbool we�d instinctively understand each other. She knew exactly when to put her hand out, or when to touch my elbow. the little things that make the chemistry between co-stars."

"During the making of The Namesake I was more concerned about getting my Bengali accent right than anything else. I spent hours getting it right."

Irrfan�s wife is Bengali. "But that didn�t help me much. We don�t speak Bengali at home. Ashok Ganguly was a mystery to me. I had to get both, his external and internal life, right."

About the love scene, he said: "Yes, at first I was startled. It was a little more explicit and longer than love scenes generally are. I was worried about her reaction. If Tabu had been even slightly awkward, I�d have been worried. But she made me comfortable by being completely into the scene. After that there was no awkwardness. We were very professional about it."

Irrfan says he didn�t expect an overwhelming response for The Namesake.

"I never imagined such a response. People in the US were watching it repeatedly. It suddenly made me feel worthwhile as an actor. I was fascinated by the silences of my character. It was not expressed even in Jhumpa Lahiri�s novel. Mira added a lot to the original material. That�s the fun of a movie adaptation. The movie is over, but I�m still discovering facets to my character."