Panaji, Nov 22

To catch the attention of a film director and snatch his first big break, critically acclaimed actor Adil Hussain even rented a thatch hut outside the mansion of a noted film producer in Guwahati, Hussain confessed during an interactive session on the sidelines of the 50th edition of IFFI on Friday.

Responding to a question from a young film student, who sought to know from the Assam-born actor whether he had tried to catch the attention of a filmmaker during his early days as an actor, Hussain shared his early travails.

"I had rented a thatch hut in Guwahati in front of the most famous director's house in Assam thinking that one day I would get a break. So one day the director comes out of his house and I come out and he says, you are my hero...," Hussain said.

"The rent of the hut was Rs 150," he added.

The actor who has been part of various regional, Bollywood, European and Hollywood films said that he got his break out of the blue when a filmmaker bumped into him in a lounge in Kolkata and asked him to become a part of a film.

"And then one fine day I was sitting in Kolkata and one guy comes in and I don't even know this guy. He says, Are you Adil? Do you want to work in a film, but it is not a hero's role," Hussain said.

The ace actor will be seen in Prakash Jha's upcoming film 'Pareeksha' scheduled to be released next year.

Lived in thatch hut to catch director's eye: Adil Hussain