Nassar & Zakir Hussain Movies Together List — 3 Films

The shape of the work

Nassar acted in every film; Zakir Hussain acted in all of them.

Partnership facts

• Nassar was the one who pushed Zakir Hussain to take up the role of the boxing coach in Irudhi Suttru. Zakir was hesitant because he didn't think he looked like a boxer. Nassar told him, 'You don't need to look like one. You need to act like one.'
• In Saala Khadoos, Nassar played the corrupt boxing federation boss. Zakir played the referee who gets bullied. Their one-on-one scene in the ring — where Nassar screams at Zakir to fix a match — was shot in a single take. Zakir later said Nassar's intensity made him forget his lines, but he stayed in character and improvised the stammer.
• The success of Irudhi Suttru (2016) directly led to the Hindi remake Saala Khadoos releasing the same year. But here's the twist: Nassar and Zakir Hussain are the only two actors who appear in both versions — playing the exact same roles. No other cast member crossed over.
• During the shoot of Jayantabhai Ki Luv Story (2013), Nassar and Zakir shared a room in a cheap Mumbai hotel for three weeks. Nassar cooked sambar every night. Zakir, a non-vegetarian, said he survived on that sambar and chapatis because he couldn't find decent food nearby.
• Zakir Hussain on Nassar: 'He is the only co-actor who would correct my Tamil diction between takes. Even when we were shooting the Hindi version, he'd whisper the Tamil line first, then say the Hindi one. He wanted me to feel the emotion in my mother tongue.'