Birthday Special: What exactly did Saif Ali Khan’s success do for the actor?

Saif Ali Khan has had a rather unpredictable career Debuting in 1992 he had some successes many misfires and a number of disasters And yet to say in the language of the Hindi film industry carved a niche for himself He has played urban characters and also catered to the lowest denominator by being total Sadak Chaap in all fascinating waysKhan who celebrates his birthday today is away from and beyond the Khan trinity he lets his cinema function the way he wants and the way he wishes he doesnrsquot care about who has bigger hits and more blockbusters Hersquos more concerned with what he brings with his films and performancesSo what exactly have his successes done for him One of the first successes of his career was YRFrsquos lsquoYeh Dillagirsquo in 1994 fondly remembered for the lsquoOle Olersquo track that introduced to us this flamboyant flirtatious character Long unkempt hair bordering slightly towards effeminacy Khan was the embodiment of everything that could be questionable and offensive in 2021 Had it not been for his sacrifice in the climax this love triangle could very well be ripped apart for the way it projected loveIn the same year he teamed up with the same actor from the film above Akshay Kumar in almost the same look but a diametrically opposite character lsquoMain Khiladi Tu Anarirsquo saw him as Superstar Deepak Kumar The actor is suffocated by playing extended versions of himself in his films hersquos desperate for reinvention and extending his oeuvre Enters Inspector Karan Joglekar and he knows what his next celluloid character would be A film star is starstruck by a police inspector who refuses to be intimidated by his auraDespite playing a Superstar Khanrsquos fixation for Kumar was endearing and it ultimately subverted the idea of stardom The tricky question here is Was Deepak Kumar a better actor than Saif Ali Khan Or was it the other way roundSeven years later Deepak Kumar and Saif Ali Khan both may have found their reason to shine and grin due to Farhan Akhtarrsquos directorial debut lsquoDil Chahta Hairsquo The unkemptness was gone the awkward delivery vanished the constant nagging for a meaty role in 1994 finally evaporated right at the beginning of the Millennium Here Khan was Sameer lovable lost and a limbering fool Hersquos constantly petrified and confused when it comes to love just like most men who donrsquot encounter the true essence easilyHersquos cheated by a crook pretending to be in love with him his girlfriend walks out of their relationship and the woman he falls for already has a boyfriend And Khan essayed the tumultuousness with ease breeze and charm Almost a decade after debuting in Hindi Cinema Khan found a role that resurrected his career Deepak Kumar would have been proud of Sameer and Inspector Karan Joglekar jealousThe period between 2004 and 2007 was arguably the best in his threedecade career With the success of lsquoHum Tumrsquo lsquoParineetarsquo lsquoSalaam Namastersquo he showed fans naysayers and the industry he had it in him to carry a film without the support of another actor and make it walk with pride towards success rather than making it crawl And what lsquoDil Chahta Hairsquo was to 2001 lsquoOmkararsquo could be to 2006 specifically for KhanShedding all his flamboyance and stripping all of his urbanised aura Khan was at his rustic dirtiest best He played Langda Tyagi in Vishal Bhardwajrsquos chilling adaptation of William Shakespearersquos Othello Hersquos driven by greed hope vengeance and destruction There isnrsquot a trace of guilt as he remorselessly annihilates relationships and bonds He isnrsquot just physically repulsive but mentally hideous too This was Khan at his finest outing He proved the milieu isnrsquot as crucial as the meat isThere were many other shades of grey in equally compelling almost classics like lsquoEk Hasina Thirsquo perhaps his first tryst with villainy Karan the character he essays is charming and mysterious Who else but Sriram Raghavan couldrsquove done justice to this juicy thriller that laid its foundation on passion and deceit Two years later in Homi Adajaniarsquos lsquoBeing Cyrusrsquo Khan cheated on the audience by making them believe hersquos the nice guy being the bad one all alongThatrsquos pretty much his career his failures and misfires may have led the audiences to believe he isnrsquot a bankable star but his eccentric film choices leave you wideeyed making you realise he was a bonafide star and a dependable actor all alongAlso Read See photos Saif Ali Khan is the new blueeyed boy in Bollywood quite literally