Joginder Tuteja (DNA; May 9, 2017)

With the announcement of Baazaar starring Saif Ali Khan setting a December date for its release, the Nawab of Pataudi now has four releases in 2017. This is the first time in 18 years that the actor will have four films arriving in a single calendar year. Rangoon has already released, Chef comes in June, Kalakaandi in September and, of course, there’s Baazaar at year-end.

One glance at his filmography and you’ll know that Saif has only been seen in 50-odd films since his debut in 1993. Notes an industry insider, “Compare that to Akshay Kumar and Ajay Devgn, who started out in Bollywood at around the same time and have done some 100 films each and you find that he has maintained a moderate pace. 2017 is going to be an exception.”

A trade source reasons, “In a way, he is compensating for a lean phase over the last few years. In 2016, he didn’t have a single release and in 2015, he just had Phantom to his name. He may have had a few misses of late (Rangoon, included), but his performances were always appreciated.”

Also, while Rangoon was a multi-starrer, his upcoming releases have Saif as the only leading man in each outing. And with each film’s genre being different, the actor is aiming for versatility. Akshay is the only actor who has four releases almost every year.