It is the era of reinvention for underrated actors from the 1990s. First came Bobby Deol, and now it’s Saif Ali Khan’s turn. Deol’s reinvention went the macho-hypermasculine way, with rock-hard abs and slow-mo action sequences. Saif’s transformation is more understated and in accordance with his royal lineage. He has gone from being the butt of the joke for his drawl and tone-deaf replies in interviews to a suave family man, who often jokes at his own expense.
His latest appearance in Two Much with Kajol and Twinkle has everyone in splits. He aced over the ‘khiladi’ Akshay Kumar who, at least in films, has a better sense of humour.
When he mentioned a ‘rough’ upbringing, Twinkle reminded him that he was brought up in a palace.
“They were unpainted palaces. It was a big struggle. It wasn’t air-conditioned,” was Saif’s quick and cheeky response.
Also read: Not all star kids are lucky. It took Bobby Deol 30 years to win people over, build a fan base
Underrated Khan
Saif is the most underrated of Bollywood’s Khans.
Every Khan has his USP—Shah Rukh Khan’s charisma, Salman Khan’s machismo and Aamir Khan’s perfectionism. But Saif, born with a literal silver spoon, was never the star, despite stand out performances in films like Hum Tum (2004), Parineeta (2005) and Omkara (2006).
But this landmark reinvention augmented by wit, humour and viral one-liners has given him a new identity.
People also tend to forget he is a national-award winning actor. And he did not win the award for a gritty/serious film, but for Hum Tum, where he played a man child who evolves into a responsible person. Even for this role, he was the fourth choice, after Aamir, Hrithik Roshan and Vivek Oberoi.
The only time he got the spotlight in the 1990s and 2000s was when mimicry artists imitated his drawl.
It was around this time that he also divorced his wife, grabbed headlines with his many affairs before eventually falling in love with Kareena and marrying her. Their film Tashan was a flop but the wedding was a hit.
Then came Sacred Games (2018). Streaming was still new and Netflix adapted the Vikram Chandra book into a well-made thriller. For some time all anyone could talk about was Saif’s performance as the Sikh cop Sartaj Singh. Saif, the actor, got credibility, but Saif, the man, had still not cracked the mainstream.
Unfortunately, it took a deadly attack for the spotlight to land on him again. When he bravely saved his family from an attacker, and emerged a real-life hero, people on the internet started paying their dues.
They dug up old videos of his responses, and soon, he got a new identity–Gen Z core. His responses in talk shows became reels and edits on Instagram, and soon, he was rebranded.
Also read: Aamir Khan and Salman Khan are still dodging and deflecting the age question, 20 yrs later
No filters
Access to Saif, who does not have a social media account, is through Kareena’s shots of her husband—be it a shirtless picture, showing off his physique and titled ‘Daddy-o’ or dressed in a white kurta, enjoying the winter sun. We get to see Saif in his zone–playing with his sons, Jeh and Taimur, reading or just smiling happily into the camera for his wife’s selfies.
We do not have that kind of almost intimate access to any of the other Khans, including Shah Rukh. What’s more, it comes from a doting wife, who is clearly in love with her husband and content with the family the two have.
And it does help that Kareena Kapoor Khan constantly gushes about him. After all, who does not like a husband that truly makes his wife happy?
In the world of carefully curated images, and filters, Saif appears in his comfort zone, happy in his quiet life. His ‘no filter’ approach feels like a fresh breath of air.
Saif joking that one cannot afford to have multiple divorces or messaging Preity Zinta whether she was ‘under water or what!’, when she was in a tsunami-struck area are moments that have effortlessly entered pop culture.
It is the era of Saif’s ‘unsaif’ sense of humour, and we are living in it, happily.
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(Edited by Theres Sudeep)