Indian actor Anupam Kher brought a mix of humor, grit and unvarnished honesty to his International Film Festival of India ( IFFI ) masterclass, “Giving Up Is Not a Choice,” holding a packed Kala Mandir audience with stories spanning his small-town beginnings, his breakout turn in “Saaransh,” more than 540 screen credits and a career-defining encounter with Robert De Niro. The session was motivational address, entertainment and a window into his unique life as a performer.

Kher was just 28 when he played a 65-year-old man in Mahesh Bhatt’s “Saaransh” in 1984. He later crossed over to Hollywood with films such as “Silver Linings Playbook” (2012) and the series “New Amsterdam,” and has performed in “almost all Indian languages.”

A long-time admirer of Robert De Niro, Kher wrote papers o

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