Subhash K Jha (DNA; June 6, 2017)

Saif Ali Khan was to have three releases this year. But now it looks like his film Chef, has been postponed indefinitely.

The release, which was to be on July 14, was put on hold after Jagga Jasoos announced they are releasing on the same day. The official reason given for the delay is the clutter of releases. Says director Raja Krishna Menon, “July 14 became over-crowded. There are too many releases in the first two weeks if July. We’re looking into a new release date. The producers feel we should get some sort of passage to ensure a proper release. Nowadays we have to consider Hollywood releases also while seeking a proper release date. I think there is too much time, effort and passion involved in the making of a film to be adamant about a release date.”

There has been no announcement of a new release date for Chef. So now it is unclear whether the actor will move one of his releases to 2018.

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.

Joginder Tuteja (DNA; March 23, 2017)

Saif Ali Khan invested close to a year-and-a-half on Rangoon. Now that the film has released and is largely off the screens, Saif has moved on. He is looking forward to his next three films already, two of which are set to arrive in a matter of few months from now.

“He has a couple of films — Kalakaandi and Chef — in different stages of production. Then he is gearing up to begin work on Nikkhil Advani’s Baazaar,” informs our source.

When contacted, Saif was quite candid about the choices that he is making as an actor.

“I didn’t have a particularly great time at the movies a year before. That said, in the interim period, some very interesting directors called me with their scripts and said that I was their first choice. That’s always good to hear, when it is genuine. I want to work hard, and then prove to them I am not just a credible actor but also a very interesting one,” says Saif. One such film is Kalakaandi, which is directed by Akshat Verma (who wrote Delhi Belly).

Next to arrive would be Chef. “I am shooting for it right now. We have been doing some really interesting work on it. The film is giving me a lot of joy,” says Saif about the film, which sees director Raja Menon return after one of the most acclaimed films of 2016, Airlift. Meanwhile, Saif is also slated to do Baazaar. “It is a stock market thriller and one of its kinds. The film is truly exciting for me,” Saif talks about the film, which will go on floors a few months from now.

Kalakaandi releases on May 26, Chef arrives on July 14. Count the February release of Rangoon and that makes it three films in as few as four months for Saif.

Going by his recent description, the Saif Ali Khan-starrer sounds a lot like the 2011 dramedy
Bryan Durham (DNA; March 3, 2017)

By his own admission, Saif Ali Khan is celebrating his love for Mumbai in his next, Akshat Varma’s Kalakaandi. But peel off that marketing spiel and take a look at the brief synopsis he offered in a recent interview and you have a somewhat sketchy idea of what the slice-of-life film is about. And it sounds a lot (though not entirely) like this Joseph Gordon-Levitt film called 50/50, which also starred Seth Rogen.

Young man in a boring job who doesn’t even smoke, but gets cancer anyway? Check! 50/50 did that as early as 2011. The Joseph Gordon-Levitt film is also about Adam, a good guy who is flabbergasted to discover he has spinal cancer with a 50/50 chance of survival. Ditto with Saif’s Rileen in Kalakaandi.

Tries drugs for the first time and it affects his perspective on life? Check! JGL’s Adam tries out medical marijuana for the first time and begins to ‘see’ and ‘understand’ things differently. We know that Rileen pops acid (aka LSD) at his brother’s wedding party. And has a night to remember.

Two guys who matter to the story somewhat? Check! In 50/50, two cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy with Adam, ply him with medical marijuana. In Kalakaandi, Deepak Dobriyal and Vijay Raaz play two mafia guys who Rileen hobnobs with.

Depending on what else is revealed in the Kalakaandi trailer in the days ahead, it’s entirely possible that there will be a best friend’s role announced, just like Adam has in Kyle (Seth Rogen).

So, here’s the thing. We’re not saying Kalakaandi’s an out-and-out copy of 50/50, but an early description of the Saif-starrer, ahead of its April 21 release (and in the absence of a trailer) sure makes a case for the comparison with the JGL-starrer.

There will be marked differences between the two films, as is to be expected, but there’s also no denying the similarities staring you in the face, is there?

HIGHLIGHT
You could argue that Kalakaandi is like Breaking Bad, except Saif’s Rileen consumes and doesn’t deal in drugs, Bryan Cranston’s Walter White does the opposite

The actor opens up about his upcoming film which showcases the different faces of Mumbai and takes him on an acid trip
Roshmila Bhattacharya (MUMBAI MIRROR; March 1, 2017)

On Tuesday, Saif Ali Khan took a helicopter ride to Kolhapur for an event and while returning looked down, and through the haze and heat, saw the City of Dreams spread out below him, with its looming sky-scrapers and its pockets of slums, from the Mahalaxmi Race Course to the Sea Link and Bandra’s Otters Club and was overwhelmed by love for it.

“I’ve lived in Pataudi, Bhopal and Delhi, I have family in Kolkata and have schooled in England, but Mumbai is where I belong. It’s where I was born, where my wife (Kareena Kapoor) was born, where all my three children — Sara, Ibrahim and Taimur — were born. This is my home,” he says emotionally.

Interestingly, one of his upcoming films is about the city and showcases its diversity through three different stories encompassing three different sections of society, their different lifestyle, attitudes and even language. Earlier titled Kalagandi, it has now changed to Kalakaandi because the “legal department contended that the earlier title was a little rude, even naughty”. “Kalakaandi with its slightly Maharshtrian twang, talks about the many kaands that go on here, the mix-ups and the snafus. We’re currently working on the music and after seeing the film, one of the coolest I’ve done, I’ve started loving the city even more. It’s the city of hope, of dreams and opportunities for young people struggling to make a name, place and life for themselves alongside the rich and the famous,” he asserts.

Saif’s character goes by the name of Rileen. “It’s a weird name but then it’s a weird script,” he quips. Rileen is a straitlaced banker who has never jumped a red light or smoked a cigarette in his life. Life’s rolling down a straight road when he learns that he has cancer and not long to live.

“His brother is getting married and at his party, Rileen pops acid that one of the guys there offers him, and it turns out to be the best night of his life as he interacts with two mafia guys (played by Deepak Dobriyal and Vijay Raaz) and an upwardly mobile couple (Kunaal Roy Kapur and Sobhita Dhulipala) who’re dating but the girl is set to fly off to the US for further studies and this could mean the end for them,” Saif informs. “If Dil Chahta Hai cracked the surface of reality and normality, then Kalakaandi celebrates it.”

Is there something on his bucket list that given a chance he’d like to try, you wonder, and he retorts, “No, unlike Rileen I have no regrets, I’ve lead an unrestricted, carefree existence,” he confides. And what kind of prep did he need to do to play Rileen? “Nothing really, I was pretty much playing myself, right down to the Hindi-English dialogue. Unless it was recalling what it was like tripping on acid as a teenager,” he smiles.