BOMBAY TIMES (January 8, 2018)

Saif Ali Khan, who has spent 25 years in Bollywood, entertaining the audience with an array of films like Dil Chahta Hai,Omkara and Being Cyrus amongst many others, hits the momentous 60th film mark with debutante director Akshat Verma’s Kaalakaandi.The actor,who is known for picking distinguishable roles, zeroed in on the dark comedy admittedly after giving it a lot of thought. Eventually, Saif immersed himself so much into the project that he even choreographed the wedding song in the film, Kaala Doreya. Even earlier on in his career, Saif had suggested hook steps for the song Woh Ladki Hai Kahan in Dil Chahta Hai.

Nary Singh, who is one of the most-talked about characters from the promos of the film, had a fan-girl moment, when working with Saif. While shooting pivotal scenes with him, she was not only awestruck by the actor’s presence on the set,but also nervous while enacting her scenes. When the director brought it to Saif’s notice,he went out of the way to make her feel comfortable.

Other than Saif, the film also boasts of interesting characters that will draw you into its funny, yet dark narrative. Actor Deepak Dobriyal, known for his performances across indie and mainstream films, tutored his co-stars in the Haryanvi dialect for the movie. While shooting the song, Swagpur ka Choudhary, a break-meets-funk-rock number with a dash of Haryanvi lyrics,most of the actors found it difficult to lip sync the lines correctly. Deepak, who plays a gangster in the film, came to their rescue and explained the meaning of the lines, which helped his costars to slip into the right mood for the number.Neil Bhoopalam,who plays an underworld don styled himself keeping the fashion of the 80s and Amitabh Bachchan in mind. His look is replete with long side locks, bell-bottoms and tight shirts. The actor also watched the superstar’s movies to effectively copy his mannerisms.

The film also stars actors like Vijay Raaz, Sobhita Dhulipala (Miss India Earth 2013), Kunaal Roy Kapur, Akshay Oberoi, Shehnaz Treasury, Shivam Patil and Amyra Dastur.

Kaalakaandi, produced by Cinestaan Film Company and Flying Unicorn, releases on January 12.