Nirmal’s journey to Lahore

Nirmal Pandey has been synonymous for many with Vikram Mallah in Shekhar Kapur’s Bandit Queen. But not many know that the intense actor, who recently passed away, apparently happens to be the only Indian actor to have won a Best Actress Award!
Yes, he won the Best Actress award for his performance as a transvestite in Amol Palekar’s Daayraa. Unfortunately, the great actor, who began his journey in Chambal, ends it in Lahore.
Reminiscing the time spent with Nirmal, director of Lahore, Sanjay Puran Singh said, “I found Nirmal to be one of the most jovial people in the industry. He was always supportive and never had any attitude issues. When you’re a debut filmmaker, it gets difficult to deal with established actors. With Nirmal, I never faced that.” He added, “Nirmal was very keen on watching the film. In fact, we were to meet over the weekend for a special screening of Lahore. It’s sad that an actor of his stature couldn’t live to see his own great performance!”
Reacting to Nirmal’s sudden demise, his co-star from the film and a veteran actor himself, Saurabh Shukla, said, “It’s come as a shock to me. Life is so very uncertain. I have known Nirmal for the last 20 years, but we could never work together. I was lucky to get Lahore and enjoyed every bit of the time spent with him on the sets!”
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