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Why Saif Ali Khan Didn’t Cast Sara in ‘Jawaani Jaaneman’

Saif Ali Khan comments on working with family, nepotism and more. 

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After the success of Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior, Saif Ali Khan will be seen in Jawaani Jaaneman. The film marks Saif’s return to a genre that’s very different from his recent roles. The trailer begins with Saif Ali Khan living the glorious single life. All is well until a stranger, Aalaya, enters his life and claims that Saif might be her father.

The Quint spoke with Saif Ali Khan ahead of the release of Jawaani Jaaneman about working with his family, growing old, the politics of Tanhaji and more.

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There’s been so much talk about… you have gone and said that you’re growing old. Why is growing old made out to be such a big deal?

Saif Ali Khan: Well, growing old is a big deal because you grow old and then you die. And also Bollywood, in particular, is youth-obsessed. There’s a lot of pressure in our town to be and feel young. But I don’t know. I am quite lucky because of the way I am wired and the life I have had. But I think there are certain environments wherein you can be rewarded for being a certain age. There’s a great sense of calm and a sense of knowing. I am 49 now and I think 50 to 60, that journey those 10 years is something I think should be the greatest years of life in terms of enjoyment, exposure and holidays.

When a certain script now comes to you, we have seen you in similar shades like Hum Tum, Ta Ra Rum Pum. What do you think the script has to do differently now?

Saif Ali Khan: It’s kind of about the same energy of characters as you said from Hum Tum, and some of those rom coms from a few years ago. So it’s that same guy who is a bit older. And it’s about father and daughter. And it’s about someone who is a bit Peter Pan-ish, he’s accepting his age and what he’s doing in life and how and what and whether he does or not is the story. It’s a bit edgier than the films that we mentioned.

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How did you latch on to the character?

Saif Ali Khan: My friend, Jay Shewakramani, used to produce films for Tips and we have known each other since Race. We’ve been friends forever. We never thought our relationship is something that would facilitate work. But he had the script and he mentioned it to me and I read it and I thought it was nice but it was a couple of years ago and it somehow didn’t resonate. And then last year, I just remembered it and I said Jay should we make it.

Why didn’t you cast Sara? Don’t you think it would have drawn more people to the theatres to watch the two of you?

Well you know, I have never really been keen on capitalizing or confusing the line between real life and films. I have never worked with my mother. A lot of my family members are actors, including my daughter and my mother and wife, sister and brother-in-law…I have never really thought of working with any of them. The only time I would offer Sara a film is when I think she needed some kind of help. But her trajectory should be completely different. And she should be working with a whole bunch of different people. I don’t know I just don’t want to confuse any issues between personal and professional equations. I myself wouldn’t be keen that we kind of capitalize on any kind of real-life father-daughter thing. I think you should just work with actors, not confuse the two.

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So you know this whole nepotism debate is on a high again, do you think giving Aalaya a chance will bring fingers pointing at you?

Saif Ali Khan: Well, I think there’ll always be an issue. There is a lot of nepotism in our country and not just in this profession. Fortunately or unfortunately she tested for this role and she was the best that we saw. We saw a lot of people and the director saw a lot of people and they liked her the best. There is an advantage I am sure but you’re still going to test and your work is going to be seen and you can be the most famous kid in the world with a lot of connections but if you don’t suit the role, we won’t cast you. There are few people who have tested and done well in the movies without having those connections but there’s no doubt that having connections, open door helps.

If you were given a chance to play a 20 something or 30 something and then romance someone who is also in their early 20s. Do you think at this point in your career, you’d be willing to do it?

Saif Ali Khan: I don’t know, it depends on the script. I mean, yeah. You could be younger. There are many ways of doing it. There can even be a certain amount of CG, so it depends on what the role is like and if it makes sense and thank god we are away from the time when people are dressing up like college students in their late forties.

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Do you think that your character in Tanhaji played to the narrative of pitting religion against the other? That wasn’t really the concern, it was more about territory.

Saif Ali Khan: I don’t think Tanhaji or Shivaji were fighting for Indian independence, I don’t think there was India as a concept. They were fighting for their own territory and their own area. But it’s a narrative that people are buying into and is definitely a narrative that we are also selling, whether it’s historically accurate or not it probably in some ways is and in some way it isn’t.

Saif when we spoke last during Tanhaji, you said that you’re still making an opinion about CAA and the protests that are going on around in the country, do you…

Saif Ali Khan: I mean i had given a comment on that saying that India is an environment where people say something sometimes, the resonance of that and the impact of that is not the same as it would be in a situation where you make a comment and your opinion is respected as your opinion. There’d a tremendous kind of fallout to the slightest comment. So most people, sensible people will play very safe and not make any comment. This is a film interview. Why don’t you go and interview a politician and ask them about this stuff?

(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)

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