It’s been over three decades in the Hindi film industry for Saif Ali Khan, and the actor has maintained his relevance throughout with his choices. Recently seen in the cop drama Kartavya, Saif Ali Khan has earlier admitted that he was not as good in his initial few films, but he got opportunities along the way to prove his worth. However, he asserts that things weren’t as simple as they seemed.
“I survived because there was a massive patch where nobody wanted to do those movies that I was doing. It wasn’t that I was getting the best films in the world repeatedly despite not being good. There was a strong downward movement but then there was luck,” he says, adding that even the audiences were more forgiving then, compared to today. “It was a simpler time, people were much more forgiving.”
The actor reflects, “In my defense, it’s not that I was doing particularly well or getting lots of chances. I was very lucky to get a great break in a movie Yash Chopra ji was directing and it was a huge privilege. The film didn’t do well and then I kind of went into a slump, but Yeh Dillagi brought me back, people liked me and it was a two-hero film with Akshay Kumar. So, It’s not that I was doing particularly well or getting lots of chances. I got a little bit of [opportunities along the way] for working quite hard and putting everything into it. They got me a little bit of reward with films like Main Khiladi Tu Anari and I slowly kind of made my way into things.”
Ask him if he feels the young generation of actors doesn’t get that privilege and are written off quite easily, as he has seen with his kids Sara Ali Khan and Ibrahim Ali Khan, and he says, “it was definitely a more forgiving time [when I came] and today you need to be much more prepared than we were. But the whole concept of preparation has changed and some actors have always done that. I remember Hrithik Roshan obviously prepared his dance and his physique and all these things before his debut. But the concept has changed and the whole world of movies has kind of changed.”
He adds, “It’s a different time and I’ve said this to them [kids Sara and Ibrahim] also that you have to prepare but these are also producers’ calls. Sometimes it’s difficult to remember what it’s like when you’re in your early 20s. The big screen has such a strong pull that people feel that they are ready and they want to be ready. So it’s a tough one. I think to have a successful job, you have to be very blessed in life in any field. But our field has become extremely extreme. It’s always been competitive but people are less forgiving now certainly than they were.”