In 2021, Saif Ali Khan again surprised the audiences with his performance as a politician in Amazon Prime Video’s web series ‘Tandav’. From 2018-2021, Saif Ali Khan became so popular among the audiences that both his OTT shows broke records of viewership.
oday, we will tell you about an actor who is married to a superstar, is the son of a yesteryear actress, and a former Indian cricketer. This actor himself is an established name in the film industry but has been grabbing headlines recently ever since his debut in the OTT space.
The actor we are talking about today is Saif Ali Khan who made his OTT debut with ‘Sacred Games’ on Netflix. It was Netflix’s first original Indian series and was widely popular when it was released.
Over the past few years, the influx of OTT platforms and their popularity in India has nudged mainstream actors and actresses to venture into a medium other than theatrical movies. It kickstarted with Saif Ali Khan, who played the titular role in the critically acclaimed Sacred Games. The neo-noir crime thriller web series went on to become a massive hit and eventually paved the way for Bollywood actors like Ajay Devgn and Shahid Kapoor to take the plunge into the world of OTT. Given the time it takes to make an episodic series, these stars also demand hefty fees.
Saif Ali Khan
Back when the Bollywood actors hadn’t turned their attention to OTT, Saif Ali Khan’s OTT debut gamble with Sacred Games paid off as Netflix India’s first original series became the benchmark for OTT releases in India. The actor took home Rs 15 crore for playing Inspector Sartaj Singh in the first season of Sacred Games, according to Times of India.
Bollywood filmmaker Anurag Kashyap recently opened up about the third season of Saif Ali Khan’s web series ‘Sacred Games’ being shelved.
He also revealed that he is not working for OTT platforms right now as they are all ‘scared’ since the controversies around Saif’s web show ‘Tandav’.
Anurag Kashyap says he’s ‘not interested’ in OTT now
“I wanted to do a lot of work, in fact I have worked on it to. But OTT ki aaj ke date me himmat nahi hai. Tandav ke baad sab dar gaye hain,” the filmmaker said.
“Now, I am not interested in the (kind of work on) OTT where I am not allowed to use surnames for characters, I am not allowed to show stuff as they exist. I cannot do this hygienic work. I will not do it. If I cannot keep things real, I will rather not do it,” he added during an interaction with Mashable India.
Tandav Controversy
‘Tandav’, a nine-episode political thriller, was accused of depicting Hindu Gods in an objectionable manner. This led to multiple FIRs and furious allegations that it hurt religious sentiments.
The FIRs mention that the show portrayed the Hindu deity, Shiva, in a “poor light,” as the actor playing him on the screen was shown using foul language.
The makers of the political saga had issued an unconditional apology and the streamer had said they “deeply regret” the fact that viewers considered certain scenes to be objectionable. The said scenes were also removed from the show.
About Sacred Games
The second season of the show had an open-ended climax. Both the seasons of ‘Sacred Games’ were among the most successful digital series. They were released on Netflix.
Several dialogues and scenes from the series continue to remain popular.
Directed by Anurag Kashyap, Vikramaditya Motwane and Neeraj Ghaywan, it also starred Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Pankaj Tripathi, Radhika Apte, Kubbra Sait, Kalki Koechlin, Ranvir Shorey, Surveen Chawla and others.
It took some time, but Saif Ali Khan finally garnered acclaim for his performance with films like Dil Chahta Hai & Kal Ho Naa Ho.
Since then, he has proved himself to be more than just a chocolate hero & the most versatile star of his generation.
Ahead of his next big role as Raavan in Om Raut’s Adipurush, here’s a look at 8 films that prove Saif Ali Khan’s versatility:
1. Omkara (2006)
Saif as Langda Tyagi aka Iago from William Shakespeare’s Othello is not only the best performance of his career but also one of the best performances of all time in the Indian film industry.
Bollywood actor Radhika Apte, who will be seen sharing screen space with Saif Ali Khan for the third time in the upcoming film ‘Vikram Vedha’, said that she is very comfortable working with the actor, with whom she has previously worked in ‘Sacred Games’ and ‘Baazaar’.
‘Vikram Vedha’, which also stars Hrithik Roshan, is directed by Pushkar-Gayatri. Speaking about her collaboration and why she decided to do this film, the actor said, “I chose ‘Vikram Vedha’ because I really enjoyed the subject and I saw the original one, the south one. Also, of course, the directors are so wonderful and the cast that I wanted the opportunity to work with them. Working with Saif is great as it’s my third project with him.”
“I feel very comfortable working with him and I really like him as a person. He’s very funny and whenever I’ve met him, we had interesting conversations,” she added.
Apte then spoke about working with Hrithik Roshan.
“I met Hrithik for the first time and I had a scene with him and it was really lovely. I do like what the directors are trying to say in the film. I like their style; I like them as people and our collaboration was a really lovely experience,” she shared.
The action-thriller is full of twists and turns, as a tough cop Vikram (Saif Ali Khan) sets out to track and chase a dreaded gangster Vedha (Hrithik Roshan). What unfolds is a cat-and-mouse chase, where Vedha – a master storyteller helps Vikram peel back layers through a series of stories leading to thought-provoking moral ambiguities.
‘Vikram Vedha’ is presented by Gulshan Kumar, ‘T-Series’ and ‘Reliance Entertainment’ in association with ‘Friday Filmworks’ and ‘Jio Studios’ and a ‘YNOT Studios Production’. The film is produced by Bhushan Kumar and S Sashikanth and ‘Reliance Entertainment’.
Filmmaker Anurag Kashyap has called out a fake casting profile on social media, which talked about casting for Sacred Games Season 3. Taking to his Instagram handle on Sunday, Anurag shared a screengrab of the Instagram Story of the ‘scamster’ and requested his followers to report him.
He wrote, “This man rajbeer_casting is a scamster. Pls report him. There is no season 3 of Scared games happening. I am filing an FIR against this person (sic).”
In the screenshot shared, the fake casting call mentioned the requirement of “female” actors of different age groups who “must be ok with bold scenes”.
Meanwhile, the second season of Sacred Games was released in August 2019 and the first season of the hit series was unveiled in July 2018.
Playing a righteous cop in Vikram Vedha, Saif credits director duo Pushkar-Gayathri for beautifully conveying a philosophical message through the crime thriller
Certain stories deserve a wider audience. Saif Ali Khan believes the 2017 Tamil film, Vikram Vedha, is one of them. The actor is currently in Lucknow, neck-deep in the shoot of its Hindi adaptation. After Hrithik Roshan — who slips into the role of the gangster, essayed by Vijay Sethupathi in the original — completed the first schedule of the thriller in the UAE last month, it was time for Khan to step into R Madhavan’s shoes as an honest cop. Over the past few weeks, director duo Pushkar-Gayathri have shot portions near Gomti Nagar and old Lucknow with him.
“It’s an excellent script. Vikram Vedha is a movie that makes you think,” begins Khan. The noir thriller revolves around righteous police inspector Vikram, who prides himself on his morals. When he is asked to lead an encounter unit to kill Vedha and subsequently crosses paths with him, the gangster narrates three stories that change the cop’s perspective of right and wrong. Khan says the credit rests with the writer-director duo who have gone beyond a cop actioner to delve into a deeper conflict. “On one level, it’s an action movie, a thriller and a mystery, but it has also got a philosophical [element] that makes you think. The story is deeply satisfying on many levels. While it is a challenging film, it is also the cleverest script I have read in a long time.”
The actor had last donned the khaki uniform to portray troubled inspector Sartaj Singh in Sacred Games. Where Sartaj was a victim of his circumstances, he says encounter specialist Vikram is his antithesis. “Vikram is a highly intelligent, courageous, cool and successful cop. He is confident about what he wants.” Khan admits that breathing life into this role won’t be easy, but the actor — relying as much on instinct as on experience — can surprise his fans with his nuanced performances. “Any kind of maturing helps you understand [roles better]. I find myself improving with time,” he says.
Kurbaan Releasing 27th Nov 2009
Starring Saif Ali Khan, Kareena Kapoor, Vivek Oberoi, Dia Mirza, Kirron Kher, Om Puri
Produced by Dharma Productions
Directed by Rensil D'Silva
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