‘I want to do slightly more commercial stuff this year’: Saif Ali Khan

With his sleek hair cut and fitter-than-ever physique, the stylish and suave Saif Ali Khan is giving the younger heroes a complex. The Nawab of Pataudi turned 49 recently, but forget looking his age, the Sacred Games star appears a decade younger! Even Tabu recently remarked that he is “looking so good with the haircut”. The AndhaDhun actress will share screen space with the Kaalakaandi actor in his next, Jawaani Jaaneman, which he is also producing. The two worked together in Hum Saath-Saath Hain (1999) and will reunite on screen after exactly two decades. “I don’t remember how it was working with her earlier because it was a long time ago. But, it was really good working with her now. She is a fabulous actress. Though we didn’t have much to do (together), there were a couple of really important scenes that she had. Speaking as a producer, it’s wonderful to see a really good actor bringing the scene alive,” says Saif, proudly adding that they wrapped up the movie in 43 days, “two days under schedule”.

The film was shot entirely in London and after completing it last week, the actor had extended his stay to celebrate his birthday there. best work on the web Incidentally, the second season of Sacred Games, which has Saif playing a cop, Sartaj Singh, was streamed recently. The first season gained global recognition and the actor had won rave reviews for his performance. When asked what the series has meant to him, he said, “It’s meant that there’s more than one platform available to do amazing work. In fact, some of the best work I have ever done is on that platform. 

Entertainment is changing, and the way we’re making this content is also different. We are more mobile, our show is top class, and is comparable to any international one.

That’s a great thing and I’m happy about it. It has also shown that there’s a market for intelligent directors and writers in India at the moment, which doesn’t have to be mainstream Bollywood or commercial. Since this is a web show, it should be different and tailored to suit the audience. So, a little more graphic, somehow not just in terms of sex and violence, but in terms of images. A little more artistic. It should be something beyond films and TV,” he elaborates.

A good phase

Apart from Sacred Games, the 49-year-old actor is gung-ho about his upcoming films, Jawaani Jaaneman and Bhoot Police. “The kind of ideas that were swapped on the sets of Jawaani Jaaneman and what I am expecting in Bhoot Police is something quite new and exciting. It’s a little different from how things were. I’m certainly feeling that it’s a very good time, actually it is the best time because I am better than I was,” he says.

Saif is known to completely transform himself for every role that he plays, be it his hairstyle or the physicality. He believes that as an actor he should change for every role and come up with something different. “Examples have been around since forever. Aamir (Khan) has been doing it for the longest time. You know, you’re looking for something that can become a bit of an item, a piece of film. So, you’re finding a certain kind of Punjabi trendy look that can be from London, a tattoo or some haircut to make it effective. I think that’s something the audience also appreciates. And it’s something that as an actor, I quite enjoy finding that difference in each part,” he says.

Dealing with failures...

Saif has had a checkered career, which boasts of big hits and flops. How does he deal with it? “Things work and not work for various reasons. You need to get so many of these decisions right. Sometimes, it could just be the wrong kind of film. Like, there are so many different ideas today, and a lot of intelligent guys that I come across want to make slightly European cinema, which, you know, is not really mainstream. Some are trying to redefine mainstream Bollywood, I mean, they don’t want to make a certain kind of movie, but something more sensible. It’s a little tricky, sometimes you go wrong, because, you know, it’s not the kind of film that everyone wants to see. You spend all your energy making the wrong kind of movie. So, that is disappointing. But I think the job in itself is in a way satisfying. If your directors are happy and you’re proud of the film you made, that’s satisfying enough. But when it doesn’t run, that’s where you have to be strong, pick it all up and go again.”

... And moving on  

With Sacred Games proving that he had made the right choice by moving to the digital platform, Saif now wants to keep the tempo going with his big screen outings, too. Both his upcoming films, Jawaani Jaaneman and Bhoot Police are comedies, but of a different kind. While the former is a family comedy, the latter is a horror-comedy. Saif shares that he wants to be more conscious of what the audience expects to see. 

“I have tried do it this year more than before. I want to do slightly more commercial stuff. In the past, I’ve done certain films like Chef which were a little different to what the audience would have wanted. So, I have become just a little bit more aware of what kind of films people want. For instance, Jaawani Jaaneman is quite intelligent and artistic in many places. But basically, it’s a lot of good  fun. Both, director Nitin Kakkar and I, had it in our minds that we are trying to entertain people here — the emphasis has been on that,” he concludes.