Agencies 

Mumbai, Aug 12: The soon-to-be-released biography of veteran actor Om Puri will be the first in publishing history in India in which a wife writes about her actor-husband revealing the person behind the public persona.

Penned by his author and journalist wife Nandita, the true life portrait of Om Puri invites you to intimately know the actor.

Nandita said rare photographs complement this moving account of how a poor worker's son from a non-descript village of Punjab came to represent the average Indian man on the silver screen, not only in India but all over the world.

Om Puri is one of the few Indian actors to have bagged prestigious awards for his outstanding performances and also won international acclaim for foreign films like 'City of Joy, 'East is East' and for Indian film 'Ardha Satya', she said.

The book published by Roli books offers a peep into Om Puri's life, his struggles and anxieties and the woes of his heart and how he gets rid of his shyness to become the actor he is. Told with abandon, reverence and élan, this is an inspirational tale of an ordinary man with extraordinary talents, who achieved the impossible in Indian cinema.

Patrick Swayze, his co-actor in 'City of Joy' and Naseeruddin Shah , one of his oldest friends and colleague, have written a foreword each, and the film critic of 'Guardian' Derek Malcolm has written the introduction.

Nandita said she has strived to strike the right blend of honesty and restraint for the book. She said the book is complete and she is presently involved in the second phase of editing.