Saif Ali Khan has a refreshingly grounded take on fame, work and the life that comes with it. From staying present and valuing his work to being open to criticism, he speaks with the perspective of someone who has learnt to focus on what truly matters. He reflects on the privileges of stardom, staying grounded and the value of hearing different perspectives. With Haiwaan now in theatres, the full JBL Live Headphones presents Bombay Times Lounge episode featuring Saif is live. Here are some candid takeaways from our conversation with the actor.

Well, it’s a little tricky in that sense. He’s got these special abilities where he can do certain things, and he doesn’t come across as a handicapped person at all because of that. So, it had to be quite subtle, and it wasn’t very easy to find that balance. Also, I grew up watching a lot of Japanese samurai movies, and a lot of these films have blind swordsmen for some reason, who can hear so well that they can fight. So, I had already bought into that. When that happens, it makes it much easier for you to put it across what you need to with conviction.

They all have traits that I learn from. Sometimes we get a little corrupted in our thoughts, so the simplicity and innocence of children is hugely refreshing. It really makes you think…why am I looking at things like this? They open your eyes. Then the older kids, Ibrahim and Sara, there are things to learn from them, too. Of course, there’s wisdom and experience on our side, and we want to also tell them that, you know, I’ve been there. Also, I think it’s important to spend a little bit of time alone with each child, because they’re all different when they’re alone and you also get to know them in a slightly different way when you do that. Children function differently in groups and alone. So that’s something I try to do.

A famous actor, who is a huge star, once told me, “If you look back and you have a handful of good films that you feel happy about, it’s good.” Because not everything you do will be right and register the way you want it to.

I want to balance my life well. I want to enjoy life. It is a real honour for me to be here in front of you all and to have this conversation with you. Everything’s a privilege now. I just want to do good work and create moments on screen that are remembered. I want to be a little more present, as they say.

There are many places I go to where people don’t care about you being a movie star. Like when I am travelling in many parts of Europe, you get a break from not being recognized. I wish I could get paid a lot to do what I love to do and enjoy certain things the way I would want to. But I understand it is a part of what we do, so we can’t complain about it. And maybe because I’ve seen my parents handle it, be respectful towards it and, at the same time, not take it seriously at home, it has helped. You shouldn’t think you are someone super special all the time, as that can be damaging.

Saif Ali Khan teams up with Priyadarshan for the first time in Haiwaan, and the actor finds an interesting similarity between the director and his late father, Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi. “Priyadarshan reminds me of my dad. Both were cricketers, and both lost one eye but have been great in their professional space,” he says.

Pataudi played for India (1961-1975) and lost sight in one eye after a car crash in 1961. Meanwhile, Priyadarshan played competitive cricket in school and college before suffering an eye injury in the 1980s.

In the Akshay Kumar co-starrer, Saif plays a visually impaired musician and martial arts coach. All praise for Priyadarshan, Saif adds, “He is like Clint Eastwood, senior and calm. He gives you just one take, so you have to make quick decisions as an actor.”'

Actor Kareena Kapoor Khan found herself at the centre of pregnancy rumours after being spotted in Mumbai on Friday. As the speculation snowballed, her sister-in-law, fashion designer Saba Pataudi, stepped in to set the record straight. She took to Instagram Stories to share a long note (inset above), blaming the rumours on “a bad angle”. She added, “Some things are left private. No speculation needed.”

Three decades into Bollywood, Saif Ali Khan believes longevity in the industry is a mix of hard work, timing and a fair bit of luck. The actor, recently seen in the cop drama Kartavya, admits his early years were far from smooth, despite perceptions that he was handed opportunities

“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,” says Khan, adding, “There was a strong downward movement but then there was luck.”

Reflecting on his initial years in the industry, the actor says, “It was a simpler time, people were much more forgiving.”

Khan recalls that after landing a major opportunity with a Yash Chopra film that failed to perform, his career hit a slump before Yeh Dillagi (1994), co-starring Akshay Kumar and Kajol, helped put him back in the spotlight: “People liked me and it was a two-hero film... I got a little bit of reward for working quite hard and putting everything into it. Films like Main Khiladi Tu Anari (1994) slowly helped me make my way into things.”

“The industry was definitely a more forgiving place when I came. Today you need to be much more prepared. The whole concept of preparation has changed and the whole world of movies has changed. I’ve said this to them [Sara and Ibrahim] also that you have to prepare. But our field has become extremely extreme. It’s always been competitive, but people are less forgiving now certainly than they were.”

Over a career spanning more than three decades, Saif Ali Khan has explored genres across films and OTT, from intense dramas like recently released Kartavya to beloved romcoms such as Hum Tum (2004) and Salaam Namaste (2005). But the actor now feels Bollywood-style rom-coms may no longer connect with audiences the way they once did. “I loved doing romcoms, but I feel they were like an anomaly in Indian cinema, which might have even started and finished with me in a sense,” Saif says, adding, “Romcoms are a failed experiment, although a beautiful one.”

According to the actor, audiences today struggle to relate to the genre’s classic “confused privileged guy” archetype. “People wonder what his problem is,” he says, adding that such characters no longer feel relevant after a certain age. Laughing, the 55-year-old shares that actor-wife Kareena Kapoor Khan once told him he could no longer convincingly play a confused young man, and joked that actor-son Ibrahim Ali Khan should now take over “the family business”.

Still, Saif says he remains open to returning to romance on screen: “I loved those movies and they mean a lot to me. I’d love to do a love story, or even a comedy that ends in romance. There’s still one romcom left in me.”

The actor also reflected on the growing intensity and violence in modern storytelling, calling it a reflection of the times. “It’s not enough anymore to just tell a story. It has to shake you up, punch you a bit and sometimes even put you off,” he says. Saif believes violence in cinema works only when it serves an emotional purpose. “Even violence is an art form and it has to connect. If it’s just gratuitous, you want to shut your eyes,” he says, adding that audiences today respond to deeper and more intense portrayals than they did a decade ago.

Social media influencer Orhan Awatramani aka Orry, has been dominating showbiz chatter lately, following unfiltered social media posts that have openly hinted at tensions with his former close friends, actor Sara Ali Khan and her brother, actor Ibrahim Ali Khan.

In an exclusive interview with us, Orry confirms the feud, saying, “If (Sara and Ibrahim’s mother, actor) Amrita Singh were to apologize, I could maybe see myself letting it go in the future.”

Addressing his decision to unfollow Sara on Instagram, Orry explains, “I unfollowed Sara a while ago, and I haven’t followed Ibrahim in years. Pretending to be friends with Sara means pretending to be okay with the trauma her mother put me through, and I just don’t think I can do that anymore.”

More recently, Orry’s remarks about Sara’s career went viral. However, he remains unapologetic and is not holding back. “I don’t think I said anything wrong about her. I just made a small joke, taking a dig at her career. I highly doubt she even felt bad about it. The whole internet makes fun of Sara’s movies all the time. In fact, her biggest body of work is a series of memes that she’s delivered via movies. People make fun of me being jobless all the time. It’s not that deep,” he ends.

When we reached out to Amrita for comments and clarification, she responded with a folded hands emoji. Meanwhile, attempts to reach out to Sara and Ibrahim were not met with any response till the time of going to press.

Once inseparable on party circuits, Sara and Orry’s friendship has hit a very public speed bump. A source tell us, the tension has been brewing since Sara’s birthday last year. It started with a spat between Orry and Palak Tiwari, Ibrahim’s girlfriend. It intensified when Orry also posted unflattering pictures of Sara in his wish. Now, Orry has been taking direct digs at Sara, Palak and Amrita on social media, leading to everyone unfollowing each other on Instagram.

In a now-deleted Reel posted last week, Orry was asked to name the “worst names” he knew, to which he said ‘Amrita, Sara and Paalak.’ Fans have interpreted these as references to Sara, her mother, actor Amrita Singh, and actor Palak Tiwari, who is dating Sara’s brother, actor Ibrahim Ali Khan. Following this, both Sara and Ibrahim unfollowed Orry on Instagram.

Although Sara has not reacted directly to the fallout, on Monday she posted a birthday wish for a friend. She used Vikram Sarkar’s Haryanvi song Naam Chale, with the lyrics: Khulle se khate/ na padte hisaban mein/ masti mein rehte hum/ rehte na yadan mein/ Ek life mili baby/ jee rey swadan mein/ talented balak na padte vivaadan mein. Roughly translated, the lyrics speak to living freely, avoiding calculations, and steering clear of unnecessary controversies.

Around two years ago, a WhatsApp chat allegedly between Orry and Palak surfaced on Reddit, where Palak is seen texting Orry, “If it’s an apology you want, out of respect for Sara I’m saying it. Sorry.” She was met with a middle-finger emoji in response.

The leaked exchange led fans to speculate that a serious fallout may have occurred between the two during New Year’s Eve that year, possibly triggering the tensions that followed.

On January 26, Orry shared a Reel in which he appeared wearing a micro bikini printed on a T-shirt. Responding to a comment, he joked that the printed graphic on his shirt was “holding together Sara Ali Khan’s hits.”

Actor Ibrahim Ali Khan has had a sobering first year in the film industry. After making his acting debut in Nadaaniyan in March, he starred in Sarzameen in July. In both films, reviewers criticized him for appearing “raw and unprepared”. Now, the actor admits that he probably rushed into his debut.

In an interview with Esquire India, the 24-year-old clarified that while he did not take his acting career for granted, he entered films thinking success would come easily. “I am not saying I took my chance for granted, but I stepped into the industry like, ‘Ho jaayega’. Of course, I was working very hard; I’m still working hard on my speech issue. But in a way, I feel I have rushed into those movies. I was 21 when I began shooting for it; others around me are doing it at 26, 27, 28. I now think I could have been more mindful of the scale of what was going to happen,” he said.

But for Ibrahim, whose parents, Saif Ali Khan and Amrita Singh, and grandmother, Sharmila Tagore, are all actors, his family legacy serves as inspiration whenever self-doubt creeps in. “When I feel unsure, all this (lineage) is a reminder of who’s at home. ‘You’re Saif Ali Khan’s kid. You have Bebo (stepmother Kareena Kapoor Khan) in your family. You should be able to do it. You should be smashing it, man,’” he added.

Although Sarzameen opened to mixed reviews, actor Kayoze Irani is satisfied with the audience’s reaction to his directorial debut. “The reactions have been strong and the numbers good for the platform. I am overwhelmed,” he tells us.

The film stars actor Ibrahim Ali Khan and was originally meant to be his acting debut. Kayoze, who is actor Boman Irani’s son, explains, “I thought it would be nice if Ibrahim had a slightly different debut, I liked the idea of the challenge of launching him. [However,] we had a lot of injuries — Prithviraj sir (Sukumaran, actor) broke his knee, I broke my back, so it got pushed. It was not fair to keep [Ibrahim’s other film, Nadaaniyan] on hold, so that came out first.”

Interestingly, Ibrahim’s character has a speech impediment in the film; since his debut, the actor has opened up about dealing with a speech condition IRL as well. Ask Kayoze if the character was written with this in mind and he clarifies, “The stammer was part of the script even before we cast Ibrahim. When I met him, I realized he suited the character. It’s what we wanted.”

The 31-year-old also admits that he felt the pressure of handling what was supposed to be the newcomer’s debut, along with his own. “I’d decided that Ibrahim’s career was connected to mine; his success is my success, and the same goes for failure,” he ends.

Banner and co-stars are hardly ever the criteria for actor and filmmaker Prithviraj Sukumaran when choosing a film. It has always been the script. That’s what drew him to Sarzameen as well — that it stars Kajol and is backed by Karan Johar are a bonus.

The actor shares, “I prefer to keep it straightforward. If a script appeals to me and I mean as a film lover, not as an actor or a filmmaker, that’s the first yes. From there, many things can make me say no. But with Sarzameen, everything was a yes at every step. I read the script in 2022. At that point, Kajol and Ibrahim Ali Khan weren’t attached. After reading it, I immediately called Karan Johar, who suggested that I speak to Kayoze [Irani].”

With his debut feature film, director Kayoze Irani attempts a complex human drama about the troubled relationship between a father and son, set against the backdrop of Kashmir. How does a seasoned actor like Sukumaran place their trust in a first-time filmmaker?

“For me, the number one requirement in a director is clarity — do they know how they want to tell the story they’ve chosen? It might be completely different from how I would tell it, that’s fine. What matters is clear vision. You can judge that quickly in a conversation. Kayoze had a vivid and focused idea of what he wanted to say.”

It’s fascinating how Sukumaran has two films mounted on a big canvas — the upcoming JioHotstar film, followed by S S Rajamouli’s SSMB29, easily among the most ambitious movies of India. He is unperturbed by their scale.

“Scale can never be the story; it’s just the canvas. Rajamouli sir chooses large backdrops because he excels at telling a story through big, visual strokes. Sarzameen has a big canvas; it has Kashmir, the army, and insurgency. But the story is human. The intricate character dynamics — my character’s relationship with his son, with his wife — were nuances [we] discovered as we shot.”

Soon, the actor will move to director Meghna Gulzar’s Daayra. He reveals that the film, which sees him opposite Kareena Kapoor Khan, has been the easiest yes he said. “Usually, you hear a narration and take some time to process it. With Meghna’s film, the narration was three-hour long, and right there in that room, I said, ‘I am doing this’. It’s a cracking script.”

Shedding the chocolate boy image often takes actors years and multiple films. From R Madhavan and Shahid Kapoor to even Aamir Khan, many have spent a significant part of their careers trying to move beyond the boy-next-door label. However, with his second outing Sarzameen, following his romantic debut in Nadaaniyan, Ibrahim Ali Khan is already looking to break that mould.

How, you ask? Writer and director Kayoze Irani had a clear vision for how his characters evolve through different timelines in the upcoming film. With technical support from celebrity hair designer Darshan Yewalekar, the transformation became sharper and truer to the character.

While Irani attributes much of Khan’s looks to his Pataudi lineage, he set out to portray “a boy shaped in a forge and raised in a cantonment” by changing the character’s appearance over time. “Iggy is handsome, charming, and gorgeous. But what I wanted from him, character-wise, was less of Ibrahim and more of the role,” says Irani.

Khan plays Harman, the disciplined son of an Indian army officer, who later goes rogue and joins a militant group. In the initial part of the story, the character is shown as “someone who is correct, proper, and disciplined. Then I wanted to shift gears. I wanted him to break out and be rebellious. Darshan and I focused on ideas that would give him this rugged and very masculine look.”

Irani reveals that Khan’s hair and beard go through the most transitions in the film. “He has the most complex character in the film. [To showcase] the many layers in his character, we went from big beard, small beard, long hair, short hair, to rugged looks. I wanted to stay away from the ‘chocolate boy’ looks and Pataudi genes, so we went all out. I didn’t want him to have that amazing hair and be cute at all.”

Irani says the best part was Khan’s involvement from day one. “Ibrahim was always focused on being the character, not just the hero.”

He adds that the styling was essential to reflect the baggage the character carries and the new world he steps into. “Every aspect of life plays into it — from what you wear, how you walk, to how you carry yourself. That’s how the character finds depth. The character’s psychology always drove the visual identity.”

Yewalekar, who was presented with a detailed script, put together a mood board mapping all of Khan’s transitions.

He explains, “Kayoze’s brief was very clear. He wanted the audience to believe the character is in different phases of his life just through his looks. It is always a challenge to transform a good-looking, camera-friendly, and chocolate boy into the kind of character he needed to be for this film. From day one, I felt we had to be hands-on. Our homework was solid. In fact, even when the shoot reached the halfway mark, we sat down again and discussed more ideas.”

With his debut film Nadaaniyan behind him and two movies in post-production, Ibrahim Ali Khan isn’t wasting any time commencing work on his next. Sources close to the production reveal that the actor is set to star in a love story opposite Rasha Thadani, who, like Khan, made her debut earlier this year.

While the name of the director remains under wraps, insiders say that the two leads have begun prepping for the yet-untitled movie.

“Ibrahim and Rasha have been doing reading sessions and workshops. The makers were clear that they didn’t want only a glamorous pair, but two actors who could tap into the awkward, exhilarating energy of first love. Rasha and Ibrahim clicked from the first meeting,” shares a production house insider.

The love story will be Khan’s second attempt at the genre after the widely criticized Nadaaniyan. A source shares, “While he debuted with a rom-com, Ibrahim will be seen in intense roles in Sarzameen, and Diler that features him as a marathoner. After those two outings, this film with a coming-of-age arc will focus on the softer and more relatable side of him.”

The shoot is expected to begin in October and wrap up early next year.

Actor Jugal Hansraj has kept busy with OTT projects like the series Mismatched and recently the film Nadaaniyan, where he played debutant Ibrahim Ali Khan’s father.

When probed about the negative online reactions to the film and Ibrahim’s performance, he tells us, “The feedback can be constructive, not personal. People can be kinder, and that’s lacking sometimes.”

He adds, “Being in films is a public job. One has to be ready for criticism as well as the praise. You take everything in your stride and just move on.”

However, he adds, “I am very happy with the response. It was a good experience working with the team.”

Considering he has ample experience in the industry, did he have any advice for Ibrahim? “He’s a wonderful guy, very well-mannered. It was an absolute delight to work with him. The affection towards him, the fatherly affection, came naturally,” says the 52-year-old.

Over the years, Jugal has been selective about the work he associates himself with. Now that he is doing back-to-back projects on OTT, is this the busiest phase in his career?

He says, “I get a lot of different kinds of roles now. Mismatched featured me as a flamboyant character. Nadaaniyan was a doctor-father. Mismatched was my first big OTT show. I have a couple more releases this year.”

Ibrahim Ali Khan’s debut project Nadaaniyan, co-starring Khushi Kapoor, received negative reviews from critics and audiences alike. Now, Ibrahim’s grandmother, actor Sharmila Tagore, too, has dished out honest feedback about the film, saying it didn’t live up to expectations.

During a recent interaction, Sharmila spoke about her grandchildren Sara Ali Khan and Ibrahim entering the film industry: “Sara and Ibrahim are doing a wonderful job. Ibrahim’s film was not good, but he still looks very handsome. He has tried his best. These things shouldn’t really be said in front of everyone, but honestly, the picture isn’t great. Ultimately, the picture has to be good”.

Sharmila went on to praise Sara for her dedication and potential. “She is a good actress. She works very hard and is capable of doing a lot more,” the 80-year-old told Anandabazar Patrika.

In another interview, Ibrahim’s aunt, actor Soha Ali Khan, was asked about what advice she would give him after being trolled. Soha said that one needs to develop a thick skin if they want to be a part of the film industry.

Call it a quirk of fate or irony, but Dia Mirza’s Kaafir (2019) was initially written as a film. After six years of streaming as a web series, the Zee5 offering has now been trimmed to a movie. Smiling at the turn of events, Mirza says, “It was first written as a film, but it was stuck for many years. Then Zee5 came along and said they will make it as a series. So, Bhavani Iyer [writer] rewrote it. Now, [as it streams in a film format], I was curious to see what would be retained.”

Kaafir tells the story of a woman from Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, who ends up as a prisoner in India. It fits seamlessly in Mirza’s filmography that, over the last few years, has seen diverse stories—from Thappad (2020) to Dhak Dhak (2023) and IC 814: The Kandahar Hijack (2024). But finding such opportunities hasn’t been easy.

The actor shares, “For me, Dhak Dhak was a clarion call. It changed my perception of how life would be in my 40s. The industry had made me believe that by my 40s, I’d be obscure.”

Even as she credits OTT for opening doors for female actors, she notes that author-backed roles are hard to come by. “OTT has opened up [opportunities] for female parts. But again, stories like Dhak Dhak are rare. It takes a lot of sifting and sometimes also hurting egos [to find the right projects]. I say more nos than yes.”

The actor recently worked alongside Ibrahim Ali Khan and Khushi Kapoor in Nadaaniyan. With the two actors having been trolled for their performances, Mirza says she empathized with them, as it reminded her of the “vicious” attack she received in her early years.

“We didn’t have social media then, but I was burnt at the stake. So, I empathize with how hard a personal attack can hit. The only privilege I had was that I was a beauty title holder. Beyond that, I didn’t have any support system.”

The recently released Ibrahim Ali Khan and Khushi Kapoor-starrer Nadaaniyan met with criticism, with many social media users mocking the lead actors’ acting skills as well as the film’s dialogues. Actor Jugal Hansraj, who played Ibrahim’s father in the film, has defended the newcomers.

Talking about the trolling that Khushi and Ibrahim faced after the release of the film, Jugal told India Today Digital, “Criticism should be constructive. If somebody who knows about cinema or has some experience in the field has a show or an article where they write about what worked and what didn’t, that’s something one can learn from. But on social media, I’ve noticed that there are a lot of personal attacks, which are not criticism. It’s just being silly and petty. Who am I to say it’s bad? I just say it didn’t work for me or I didn’t connect with it. But some people proclaim as if they know everything”.

Jugal asserted that actors in earlier times didn’t face such scrutiny because of the absence of social media. “They were given space and time to grow and improve. There was equal awkwardness in all of us when we started off, but because of the lack of social media, there wasn’t this unfair scrutiny.”

Taking Ibrahim and Khushi’s example, Jugal adds, “Now, unfortunately, young actors - not just these two, but many others - are under intense spotlight... Personal attacks are not cool. If you have something constructive to say, please say it. That kind of feedback helps actors learn and improve. But personal attacks about appearance get murky and messy. I’m obviously not in favour of that kind of critics”.

Last week, I went with a few screenwriter friends to watch Superboys Of Malegaon. Reema Kagti’s film has that rare magical quality—of reminding people why they do what they do, which is so important for artistes to remember. 

But, as we entered an empty theatre, I could see the heart-broken faces of my friends aged 25, 31 and 35. On most days, it’s safe to assume that a good movie can fix everything, but not that day. A large part of the post-movie conversation became about how good films are slowly being disincentivized by the system, while the same system backs mediocrity. The conversation then focused on the Internet’s hate-watch of the week—Nadaaniyan, starring Khushi Kapoor and Ibrahim Ali Khan, backed by Karan Johar.

I picked up the phone to speak to the commissioning lead at a notable streaming platform. “Many of these film studios just don’t want to put their a** on the line. If a show doesn’t come from a relatively successful creator, filmmaker, the studio doesn’t find it safe to bet on it. Star kids appear to be a safe bet because you can explain it through numbers on an excel sheet. I am sure someone on the team of Nadaaniyan had said, ‘we can get Saif to do some promotions’. It is all about recovering a cost. It’s not personal. It’s not even good business. It’s a lack of belief in themselves about what stories work,” they tell us.

For years, streaming platforms like Netflix and Amazon Prime were heralded as the great equalizers. They did offer us an array of fresh talent breaking away from Bollywood’s star-driven machinery. 

When did that change? 

A recent social media post by writer Cchintan Shaah said that these platforms are anything but the inclusive spaces they claim to be. Shaah, like many aspiring screenwriters, has spent years pitching scripts to OTT giants, only to receive templated rejections. “There are three standard responses—this doesn’t fit into our slate, our slate is full, we are already doing something on the same lines.”

“It often feels like they don’t even read my work,” he lamented in the viral post. His frustration has struck a chord among independent filmmakers and writers, who argue that these platforms have merely transferred power from Bollywood studios to the new elite of digital gatekeepers.

Are pitches even being read? One studio exec tells us, “Pitches get read. It is simply that unsolicited pitches are like the slush pile. The cold hard truth is that young talent seems to get promoted/noticed/picked up only if we know them. Everyone in corporate boardrooms loves to say ‘we have to be promoters of young ideas’ but it’s a punchline. That said, I also feel that many young writers who send in their cold pitches don’t have a sense of what the market is looking for. Right now, everyone’s on the hunt for a good horror or a Young Adult show. Or business legacy stories. But so many pitches are the standard cop and crime dramas. I don’t know how to bridge that gap. Maybe there could be some sessions, where studio heads and writers could communicate to each other.”

When the streaming boom kicked off in India, there was optimism that fresh, diverse voices would finally have a platform. The rise of content like Paatal Lok, Delhi Crime and Scam 1992, all featuring relatively untested creators, seemed to validate this belief. However, many now argue that the doors are closing again, with green-lighting decisions being dictated by existing industry relationships.

A well-known screenwriter, who delivered a streaming hit this year, says, “Streaming isn’t television. It was supposed to be about making disruptive content. But the streaming heads in India come from a television background. I am not surprised at the decisions they are making. Cringe or not, Nadaaniyan did what it had to do—made enough noise for people in small towns to watch the film. It got them numbers. Something a great, nuanced show won’t be able to achieve. Sony Liv has a wonderful show called Tabbar. Ask around and you’ll know many people have not watched it.”

I recall a conversation with Tabbar director Ajitpal Singh. He had told us, “I was an indie maker with a script. We went to small, medium, and large platforms. Some of them didn’t even read our pitch. There were excruciating periods of lull.” 

Studio execs point out that every major slate announcement is a mix of star-led ventures and shows which are creative gems. Chaitanya Tamhane, who made Court, in a recent interview, said it’s a simple solution—you can always do one for the kitchen, one for the soul.

Hansal Mehta, creator of Scam and Scoop, says, “It will need solid financial discipline, intelligent exhibition strategy, and marketing that is well-thought-out. Everyone has the data. But they need to have some faith in good talent. We need a shift in priorities.” 

But maybe the audience needs to course correct too. “If you show up to watch a film with talented people, you are saying give me more of this. But if you watch bad movies, maybe you are a part of the reason,” a filmmaker who is making an actioner for a leading streamer told us.

While the Pataudi family was not blessed with great dancing skills, they made up for it with hard work. Choreographer Vijay Ganguly—son of National Award-winning director and screenwriter Anil Ganguly—who has been on movie sets with his father since childhood, shares that he has worked with every generation of Saif Ali Khan’s family, including ex-wife Amrita Singh, Sara Ali Khan, and Ibrahim Ali Khan who recently made his debut in Bollywood with his Netflix film, Nadaaniyan.

Although the Ibrahim-starrer was met with harsh criticisms, Vijay says that like his father, Ibrahim didn’t mind working hard and endlessly rehearsing dance numbers. “Ibrahim is not a fantastic dancer but a very hardworking one.”

They met on the set of the wedding track, Tirkit Dhoom. Vijay adds, “Though he comes from a Nawabi family, he is grounded. Every time he didn’t get a step right, my assistants would go out of our way to make sure he did it well.”

Reminiscing about being on the set with Singh during the shoot of Saaheb (1985), Vijay shares that he also played a small role in the Anil Kapoor-starrer. “I was a child artiste in the film. I met her properly during the shoot of Sara’s Zara Hatke Zara Bachke [2023] and she remembered that I had choreographed Sara’s song, Chaka Chak [from Atrangi Re, 2021]. Sara would wake me up in Goa at 4am to rehearse. She is transparent and has no filters. Sometimes we have to tell her to calm down,” he added. Vijay is also designing the dance in Sara’s Metro In Dino.

Vijay shares that he met Saif for the first time during rehearsals for an award ceremony. “Saif has improved over time. He will joke about things [but still] learn his steps.”

His first film with Saif was Chef (2017), followed by Bhoot Police (2021).

Sports nutritionist and integrative health coach Nicole Linhares Kedia agrees that Ibrahim Ali Khan is “genetically blessed” when it comes to his physique. Yet, tasked with monitoring the Nadaaniyan actor’s diet, Kedia had to account for more factors than one.

“He was prepping for three films,” says Kedia, adding that while some films needed him to flaunt a perfectly chiselled frame, others, including one based on a marathon runner, were less demanding.

“As a young boy, he has a lot of distractions in his life, when it comes to food. But, he was disciplined on this plan, and would often share pictures of his meals to ensure he was adhering to the portions,” says Kedia, adding that she designed a plan that catered to the actor’s taste.

“He likes bhurji, parathas, wraps, and shawarmas. While, in the past, he would eat a lot of red meat and meet his protein requirement, he had no control over his macros. We worked on adding antioxidants and fibre to his diet, as well as fennel seeds, and other elements that would help control his blood sugar spikes. Because he enjoys biryani, we’d let him have it with brown rice, or quinoa. However, there was a big cut on the oil content.”

Kedia says it is the “small things” that she worked on that made the big difference.

“His circadian rhythm was not set, so we addressed that. At times, he’d train on an empty stomach, and we needed to add a pre-workout, considering that his [routines were strenuous]. He began to have a banana with mixed seeds before a workout, and consume water with electrolytes while training. He also began to have protein within 90 minutes of completing his exercise bout. Even though he is not gluten intolerant, he adopted a gluten-free plan because there are millets with a better nutrition profile.”

A busy 2025 is in store for Kajol, who has three projects lined up. The actor’s first offering of the year, Sarzameen, which also stars Ibrahim Ali Khan and Prithviraj Sukumaran, was to release over the Republic Day weekend. But a change in Khan’s debut plans has had a ripple effect on Kajol’s line-up. Sources say that with Nadaaniyan set to be the youngster’s launch vehicle, Karan Johar’s production Sarzameen has been delayed by a few months.

An insider tells us that Sarzameen, helmed by Kayoze Irani, was wrapped up by the end of 2023. “The film revolves around the sensitive topic of terrorism in Kashmir, with Ibrahim essaying an intense character. Karan, who has backed both Sarzameen and Nadaaniyan, felt it would be better to launch Ibrahim as a romantic hero and lined up director Shauna Gautam’s Netflix rom-com for a summer release. That also gives Kayoze the time to revisit his film, as Karan wants certain tweaks in it. The Kajol and Ibrahim-starrer will release probably in late 2025,” says the insider.

As a result, Kajol’s first release of the year will be Maa. Vishal Furia’s directorial offering is currently in post-production.

The source adds, “It’s backed by Ajay Devgn. The superstar-producer has been involved in the creative process, and is planning to take the psychological horror film to the big screen in June or July. Kajol also has Charan Tej Uppalapati’s Maharagni.”

Was this a ‘real’ attack? How can someone get into a celeb’s house like that? Why would he need an autorickshaw? Did he really go with Taimur? What, there was a knife stuck in his back and he was still coherent? Arey, if he was injured so badly, how is he walking out like that from the hospital, waving?

Saif Ali Khan got support and sympathy, for sure, but as often happens with him, he got more than his fair share of questions, doubts and scrutiny even after fighting an intruder, getting stabbed, and undergoing extensive surgery. In his first interview after the attack, Saif thanks his well-wishers and also answers the cynics, in his trademark style – with a straight bat. Excerpts:

Kareena had been out to dinner, and I had some work in the morning, so I stayed in. She came back, we had a chat and went to sleep. After a while, the house help rushed in and said – ‘There’s an intruder! There’s a guy in Jeh’s room with a knife asking for money!’ It was around 2 am, I could get the time wrong slightly, but it was late...

Obviously, I kind of lost it, and went in there to see and I saw this guy holding (what I thought were) two sticks over Jeh’s bed – it was actually a hexa blade. So he had a knife in each hand and a mask on. It was a surreal scene. And something just kind of took over and I just grabbed him. I ran and pulled him down, and then we were wrestling. He was thumping me as hard as he could in my back, and it was just thuds. I thought it was...

I didn’t. It didn’t really hurt because there’s too much of adrenaline and shock at that moment. And then he was slashing at my neck, and I was blocking it with my hand. There were slashes to my palm and my wrist and arm. There was all this violence – slashing with both hands, most of which was kind of defended. And yeah, I fought with him, but I couldn’t handle it after a while because there were these two knives in action. And I was just barefoot, bare-handed in a kurta pajama.

And I was just praying that someone could get this guy off me at this point. And my incredibly lovely house help (Geeta) pulled him off me and shoved him away. And we both kind of rolled away, and closed the door. And at this point I was covered in blood, and I lost some feeling in my right leg. This was because I had been nicked in the spine, but I didn’t realize that at the time – I thought I’d been stabbed in the leg. I went upstairs to try and find something to fight this guy. Kareena, in the meantime, had taken Jeh out and gone to Tim’s room.

Yes. While this fight happened, Jeh was taken out. I remember Kareena screaming ‘Take the kid out!’

He had woken up, and seen some of it. I don’t know, you know because I was busy (laughs). And then we all gathered upstairs.

Geeta had held the door shut from outside – so we thought he was locked inside. But he escaped the way he came – though we didn’t know that. He had gone the way he came in – which was up a drainpipe into the kids’ bathroom. I don’t think he knew where he was.

And we all headed downstairs. It was a filmi scene where I was covered in blood and we took two decorative swords off the wall. And that’s what Taimur saw – me covered in blood and Hari, the other house help, holding two swords. So, it was vaguely heroic, at least that moment (laughs). We said – ‘let’s get him’. And Kareena said – ‘No, let’s get out! Because we’ve got to get you to a hospital, and I’ve got to get Jeh out of here because I feel he’s (the intruder) still around, and there could be more of them.’

So then we all went downstairs. Kareena was shouting for a rickshaw, or a cab, or anything. I said, I kind of feel some pain. There’s something wrong with my back. She said – you go to the hospital and I’ll go to my sister’s house. She was making calls frantically – but nobody was up. And we looked at each other, and I said, ‘I’m fine. I’m not going to die.’ And Taimur also asked me – ‘Are you going to die?’ I said, ‘No.’

He was absolutely composed. He was fine. He said, ‘I’m coming with you.’ And I thought, if something happens... I was getting a lot of comfort just from looking at him at that time. And I didn’t want to go alone.

My wife sent him knowing what he would do for me. Maybe it wasn’t... at the moment, it was the right thing to do. I felt good about it. And I also thought, if God forbid, something happens, I’d like for him to be there. And he wanted to be there also. So, we went – him, me and Hari – in the rickshaw.

The rickshaw guy saw the blood and he knew something had happened. But I think because of the kid, he kind of gave the whole thing some respectability. He saw that we were decent people, somehow. I don’t know how. And he was so amazing – he took a shortcut and took it easy on bumps. He drove me to Lilavati.

Yes! (Laughs) We just walked into that emergency room. I’ve been there before a couple of times, so I knew my way around. It took them a minute to understand that there’s a celebrity involved and this is a slightly bizarre, absurd scenario. Just took a minute to sink in, you know, that a movie star has been stabbed.

I had a lot of clarity and adrenaline. They brought a wheelchair and I said, no, I don’t think a wheelchair is good idea, get me a stretcher. And I pointed at my face and said – ‘I’m Saif Ali Khan’ (laughs). They did a double take – and then all hell broke loose.

They were very efficient after that. There was a doctor on duty in his blue scrubs and he took some right decisions. Then the head of the hospital came. I really wanted to go to the loo and they said, we’ll give you a catheter. I said, no, no, I’ll walk. They couldn’t believe that I could walk, because they had had a look at the back by then.

Then they said, we have to do an MRI. They looked at my hands, my neck and said it’s all slashed up, but the back is the main issue. So they did the MRI, and somebody took the right call and said, let’s call a spinal neurosurgeon. That was a great move. Dr Dange (Dr Nitin Dange), who had just gone to bed at 2 am or something – somebody rang him up, and he rushed to the hospital.

They said a good three-four inches of the knife has gone in behind the shoulder blade and has worked its way right to the bloody spinal cord. It’s a massive stab and it’s broken off, and it’s nicked the cover of the spinal cord. And there’s spinal fluid leaking out, which is why the feeling in the leg was going. That’s how close it came: Just one more millimetre and we’d be talking paralysis. It’s not like, you know, a back spasm or something that we’re underplaying.

And the doctors did a phenomenal job. It was a major surgery. It took six hours – the spinal thing alone took 2.5 hours. I was under anesthesia for like five hours or something. It’s pretty big, that’s the longest I’ve ever been in a surgery.

They didn’t tell me initially. They said – there is a foreign body in your back, and we need to get rid of that. I could walk and everything. So I didn’t think it’s very serious.

Then later on, the doctor told me in instalments. He said, ‘Listen, you have lost spinal fluid.’ And there’s still some numbness in my thigh. And two days later, he told me why. He said, ‘I’ve moved all your nerves around.’ It’s been an incredible, like pain-free recovery apart from some muscular ache, which I’m still experiencing.

Close is close. You’re either paralyzed or you’re not. That’s how life is, right? I mean – you’re either hurt or not hurt. There’s 25 stitches here and there’s 30 stitches there. If you start with the two slashes on my palm and my arm – they had both not even cut a tendon. They could have cut the artery and the wrist and the veins, they could have cut... It’s just a miracle that my hands and my fingers are working fine. A guy cuts himself in the palm in the kitchen and then he can’t move his little finger for the rest of his life, you know.

So that’s a miracle. I have like 30 most awful scars running down my neck. I don’t understand how he missed my carotid artery and jugular vein… it’s not possible to cut somebody’s neck the way my neck is cut, and not kill them.

Yes, the question was what was he doing for 1.5 hours with a knife in his back? Absolutely not. I went downstairs and out. The first rickshaw was me going to a hospital, and then these guys went to Karisma’s house. There was no lag.

Nobody stays here all night. Everyone has a home to go to. We have some people staying in the house, but not the drivers. Unless you are going out at night or there’s something needed, then you tell them to stay on.

I would have driven if I could have found the keys. Luckily, I didn’t. I probably should not have wiggled my back much. I’d have driven. I was completely lucid.

But he could have taken time to come, na? I knew I had to go to the hospital pretty soon.

I think it is expected that there will be all kinds of reactions to something like this. There will be people ridiculing it. There will be people not believing it, people making fun of it. And I think that’s fine because it is what gives colour to the world. If everyone had a sympathetic reaction to something, it would be flat and dull. And I expected it, then there is no need to react to it.

And the thing that became clear to me is that there is so much kindness also in the world. There’s so many wonderful people who know how to make you feel better by saying supportive things. From the ward boys and the doctors to the rickshaw driver, they were all just angels, heaven-sent. There is a lot of kindness in the world and a fair amount of stupidity also. But that’s what makes it interesting.

It’s beyond. I don’t know what it is. It feels like incredibly lucky. A friend of mine said – ‘Let’s say, you were forced to roll a deadly dice. And you rolled a six.’ I think that’s a good way of putting it because I didn’t want to roll this dice. But it’s like you roll any other number and you’re dead.

The instinct was that I’d like to walk out of the hospital. I had walked in also, and I’d like to walk out on my own, and it wasn’t to show off or anything. It was just not to be alarmist and like my father (used to say) –‘let’s just kind of underplay it a bit’.

I never thought about how to present it. The more I consider the PR aspect of it, I’ve come to the conclusion that I think my life is pretty interesting for actually what it is, it doesn’t need a twist. It doesn’t need to be twisted and presented.

So, my thing is that it’s not an exaggerated injury. It’s a miraculous survival. Walking around after that, it’s still painful to stand for too long. The aches and pains are there, but they’re getting better every day. And I think it will be a complete recovery.

The kids are okay, thank God. Jeh has given me a plastic sword, and said, ‘Keep this by your bed for the next time the chor comes’. He says, ‘Geeta saved Abba and Abba saved me.’

Taimur is a little concerned about security. Sara was very emotional and Ibrahim was also very emotional, more than he obviously normally is. He was there and has been spending a lot of time with me. It’s been really kind of nice for the family to come together (laughs), but also obviously, a bit of a shock for everyone.

She’s doing very, very well. Being very strong. Naturally, a bit shaken and concerned about things like security and that something like this should not happen again.

I’ve never believed in security. People were saying, ‘Why don’t they have more security?’ I’ve never believed in security. I don’t want it. I never wanted to walk around with three of these guys. I think it would be a nightmare for me. And I still won’t, because I don’t think this is an attack on me. I’m not under threat.

None of us are under any kind of threat. This is a mistake that happened. I firmly believe a guy climbed up a drainpipe and squeezed through a hole and arrived in our house. I don’t think he knew whose house it was. It’s not an inside job. It’s none of these things. And the police have done a fantastic job.

I feel very safe in Mumbai. I think it’s a completely safe city, but yeah, we hear about stuff like this. Like in every other place in the world, whether it’s New York or London or Paris, you have to lock the doors properly and you’ve got to lock the windows. You can’t tempt fate. You can’t leave stuff open. I mean, it’s not some village in Switzerland.

No. It’s not going to change my life and it shouldn’t, because that would be... it would be wrong because, I mean, this is not one of those scenarios. This is somebody who is trying to steal something because of desperation.

Taimur said that he should be forgiven because he believed that the guy was hungry. I also believe I would have forgiven him. I feel bad for him – till where that knife comes in and my spine comes in and the fact that he tried to kill me (laughs). That’s where I stopped feeling bad for him. I understand why he did it. But he crossed the line when he went mad on me.

I don’t blame society and I don’t blame the police or Mumbai or anything. I blame myself for not locking that area properly. But I didn’t believe this would happen. I didn’t believe that this kind of thing would happen to us. This could have gone anywhere.

It’s the best possible outcome – apart from not getting stabbed at all (laughs). I used to have a gun also. Luckily, I don’t have that. I don’t know what would have happened.

I didn’t believe in that anymore. I thought some kid will get hold of it, and then there’ll be other problems.

I mean there are guns around at Pataudi. All the people who have guns – Rajwaras and the Rajasthanis – have been messaging me that they can’t believe that guy got away with it.

My father used to sleep with a shotgun by his bed. But sometimes, I believe accidents happen because there was a gun. Young kids would definitely play with it or God knows what can happen.

No, there are no weapons. There are some talvars which are ceremonial and decorative. Some people are now like, you should have protection with you at all times. The world is not safe. Sleep with a gun.

I don’t think so. Nothing will change. See, if you start doing that... because I don’t feel I’m under threat. It was not a premeditated attack. I think it just was a burglary attempt gone wrong. That poor guy, his life is more screwed than mine.

I would put on the light and firstly tell him, ‘Do you know who I am?’ (Laughs) And I think he would say, ‘Oh shit! I’m in the wrong house.’ And I’d say ‘Right, put the knife down and let’s talk about this’. I think I would have tried to reason. But it was a mixture of anger, outrage and a kind of defense. I don’t know. It was just... it was too quick. And it was completely instinctive.

I’ll tell you something funny – when we were fighting, I hit him as hard as I could with my bare hand on the back of the head. And I thought to myself – that is the most ineffectual punch in the history of punches. This guy is gonna kill me because (he has) a weapon – two knives – and (I’m) a barefooted, bare-handed man. I mean unless it’s a good movie, there is just no contest there.

(Laughs) Well, no, she was firstly, very supportive about Taimur being there. I thought she’d be more annoyed about that. But she said – ‘No, what you thought was right and you’ve exposed him in such a different way to so many things’ – that I mean he’s a different kind of kid.

She also completely understood the protective parental instinct. I remember her telling me when I was young that ‘I’ll get in the way if someone ever tries to hurt you’. It had an impact on me. So I guess it’s every parent’s instinct.

And she was very protective. The doctors were worried that there shouldn’t be any secondary infection. So she was making sure everyone wore a mask, including the doctors. So there was a bit of fear of the mother (laughs). She was also very nice. She held my hand and sang me a song, and it was very soothing.

I can’t remember. It was a lullaby. That hasn’t happened since I was a baby!