Saif Ali Khan recalls being fired from first film, says he was ‘petrified’, calls first shot ‘particularly appalling’

Actor Saif Ali Khan has recalled why he was thrown out of the 1992 film Bekhudi, meant to be his Bollywood debut, because the director felt he wasn’t ‘showing enough interest. The actor went on to make his debut in the 1993 Yash Chopra film Parampara.

Recalling his first day on a film set, Saif told Mumbai Mirror that he was shooting for a song, with director Rahul Rawail and his co-star, Kajol. “I had to tear through fake cobwebs and emerge, singing a line that went, ‘Chaahat Ki Raahon Mein, Kyun Itna Darti Hai’. It was not easy because my expression had to change as I went from ‘chaahat ki raahon mein’ to ‘kyun itna darti hai.’”

Saif continued, “I might just about pull it off today, but, back then, straight out of a boarding school in England, I was petrified. I must have performed really badly because soon after, Rahul Rawail threw me out of the film, complaining I wasn’t showing enough interest. That shot, I must admit, was particularly appalling.”

Also read: Saif Ali Khan says no one expected Tanhaji to do so well, calls it ‘highly patriotic film’ that ticks all the boxes

Saif said that it was around the time of Dil Chahta Hai that he could finally be himself on screen rather than trying to ape someone else. He said that he deliberately opted for the role of the elder brother in Race, despite being offered the younger brother’s part, because he felt that the character was more responsible.

“Around Baazaar, I began to approach acting differently, perhaps because it heralded a new wave in Hindi cinema, giving actors like me a chance to reinvent.”

Saif most recently appeared in the period drama Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior, a box office success after a string of flops and mediocre performers.

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