Actor Irrfan has earned critical acclaim for his work and proven his versatility and acting mettle with his recent performances. But being chosen by the masses for an award is something that the actor says leaves him surprised. The 50-year-old was recently given the CNN-IBN Indian Of The Year 2012 award for his contribution to the world of entertainment. He was acknowledged for his work in Paan Singh Tomar as well as Hollywood projects such as The Amazing Spider-Man and Life Of Pi this year.

The actor, who competed with the likes of Ranbir Kapoor, Sridevi, Vidya Balan, Aamir Khan, SS Rajamouli and the team of Satyamev Jayate in the nomination, feels honoured. “This award is precious for me because the kind of nominations it had and the fact that the voting was done by public. I was never sure that I will get an award. The audience chose me and that was a really pleasant surprise,” says Irrfan.

He adds, “Certain awards give you happiness and we desperately need awards which have weight—the sanctity of an award and integrity of an award.”