Popular Posts

Sunday, August 16, 2009

Happy Birthday Saif!


Saif Ali Khan has been one of my favorite stars from Bollywood,
for reasons which are not even known to me!
He had received quite a flak from all quarters when he embarked on his acting career
in the Nineties. But since then, he has come a long way.
He has proved himself to be the proverbial dark horse
and has surprised us again and again with his amazing performances
in many a film lately.
He has been often described as a mercurial performer,
and I cannot agree more.
Saif is known for his apt comic timing in
films like 'Main Khiladi Tu Anari' & 'Hum Tum' has been appreciated.
His dramatic performances in films like 'Ek Hasina Thi' & 'Omkara'
have made us take note of his acting prowess.
His natural, affable charm in films like 'Dil Chahta Hai',
'Salaam Namaste', 'Kal Ho Na Ho', and in
the very recent 'Love Aaj Kal' has endeared him all the more.
His sharp, layered portrayals in films like 'Eklavya' and
'Parineeta' have won him the much deserved laurels.

Brief Biography:
Saif was born on August 16, 1970 in New Delhi, India.
He is the son of Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi, a renowned cricketer, and is the grandson of Iftikhar Ali Khan Pataudi, who was the Nawab of Pataudi as well as an accomplished cricketer - having played for England and then for India as the captain of the team. Saif's paternal grandmother was Sajida Sultan, Begum of Bhopal, and his great-uncle was Pakistani general Nawabzada Sher Ali Khan Pataudi. Saif's mother is the famous actress Sharmila Tagore. He has two sisters: Saba & Soha Ali Khan. Saif is privileged to be the heir apparent to the headships of both the royal houses of Bhopal and Pataudi.
Initially, Saif had studied at the Lawrence School Sanawar, but he later attended Lockers Park Prep School. He then followed in his father's footsteps by attending Winchester College, a famous independent school for boys in the U.K.
Saif made his screen debut in 1992. He had his first major successes with the 1994 films 'Main Khiladi Tu Anari' and 'Yeh Dillagi'. He won the National Film Award for Best Actor for his performance in 'Hum Tum' (2004). After 'Parineeta', 'Omkara', and 'Being Cyrus', Saif is counted among the topmost Indian actors at present.
Ver recently, he has branched out into film production. He is the founder-owner of his production company Illuminati Films which has had its first release in 'Love Aaj Kal' that has been already declared a hit.

Saif has always courted controversies. From his liaison with Kamal Sadanah to his getting married to Amrita Singh, and then from his break-up with the latter, after thirteen years of marriage and two kids, to his romancing the Italian model-actress Rosa, Saif has been in the news often for the wrong reasons. Earlier, he was continually dismissed by his critics for being insincere and arrogant. He has recently been given a lot of focus by the film glossies and even by the mainstream media just because of his declaration of love for his present girlfriend Kareena Kapoor. Saif has her name tattooed on his arm and he is known to be earnest about marrying her soon. The gossip mills keep churning the juicy reports and he gets featured amply in this way too.

Select filmography:
[The films of Saif that I've seen.]
Parampara (1992)
Yeh Dillagi (1994)
Main Khiladi Tu Anari (1994)
Imtihaan (1995)
Dil Tera Deewana (1996)
Hamesha (1997)
Keemat (1998)
Kachche Dhaage (1999)
Yeh Hai Mumbai Meri Jaan (1999)
Hum Saath Saath Hain (1999)
Biwi No. 1 (1999)
Kya Kehna (2000)
Love Ke Liye Kuchh Bhi Karega (2001)
Dil Chahta Hai (2001)
Rehna Hai Tere Dil Mein (2001)
Na Tum Jaano Na Hum (2002)
Darna Mana Hai (2003)
Kal Ho Na Ho (2003)
L.o.C.-Kargil (2003)
Ek Hasina Thi (2004)
Hum Tum (2004)
Parineeta (2005)
Salaam Namaste (2005)
Being Cyrus (2006)
Omkara (2006)
Eklavya (2007)
Nehle Pe Dehla (2007)
Ta Ra Rum Pum (2007)
Race (2008)
Tashan (2008)
Thoda Pyar Thoda Magic (2008)
Roadside Romeo (2008)
Love Aaj Kal (2009)

6 comments:

Unknown said...

A timely post, dude!;)
Saif is doing well both professionally and personally (I guess, based on the tabloid reports, and on the sightings in the public space with his hot girlfriend Kareena Kapoor). I wish him all the best. May he shine as a man behind the camera too; he sure does hope to emulate his matinee idol, Clint Eastwood, and give us much more in the coming years.

Anirban Halder said...

A well-written post. Like many I put no hopes on him watching movies like 'Main Khiladi Tu Anari' and 'Yeh Dillagi'.

But with 'Dil Chahta Hai' I sit up and took notice. He was funny but cool. The looks also changed with a change of hairstyle and wardrobe. He kept on proving himself with 'Ek Hasina Thi' and other well-chosen films thereafeter.

He brought a cutting edge to 'Omkara' with his 'Langda Tyagi' act. He took a bitting on his lead actor looks to look the dirty, rustic character. One of the all-time best performances in the history of Indian cinema. I feel he even overshadowed Ajay Devgun in this film.

Romantic comedy is his forte, 'Hum Tum' is proof. There are glimpses of that skill in 'Kal Ho Na Ho' too.

Here's wishing Saif many happy returns of the day and may he keep gifting us many more memorable performances and keep on making good films under Illuminati Films.

LoverBoy said...

Happy B'Day Saifoo!
Ha ha ha.... Saif has always been tabloid fodder be it for his brush with real life romancing or for the real life tiffs! Despite the fact that he is celebrated here on the Web & on blog-space, Saif himself has declared that he doesn't believe in blogging, defending his stance as one that is entirely personal. He seems to belong to the old school, in every way, as he doesn't believe in too much of a connect with the audience unlike his contemporaries like Aamir or Salman or Shah Rukh. Yet, he reportedly gets a thousand friendship requests every day via email..... that says it all!

Unknown said...

Saif Ali Khan has never been in the same league of other leading Khans of Bollywood, he has always been known to be somewhat different than the usual leading men prototypes. He is suave, smart and selective. His arrogance is the mark of his royal heritage, I would say. Among the prominent controversies fo his career, the one that you missed mentioning is the deer-hunt saga with Salman Khan & others, while shooting for 'Hum Saath Saath Hain'.
I wish Saif had been blessed with his Dad's manly looks more than his mother's dimpled face. He also has not had the perfect voice, but he has indeed improved his voice modulations a lot in the recent years. In Kareena Kapoor, Saif has surely met a perfect match (going by the numerous photo shoots). I wish him all the luck in the coming years.

Unknown said...

Happy Birth Day..... Saifoo~ :)

All The Best!!!!!!!

Dibyendu Paul said...

Born on 16th August 1970, Saif is a Number 7 ( 1 + 6 = 7 ) in numerology ruled by Number 7 ( Neptune ), Number 1 ( Sun - Leo ) and Number 5 ( Mercury — 1 + 6 + 8 + 1 + 9 + 7 + 0 = 32 = 3 + 2 = 5 ). Being ruled by Number 7, he is also ruled by Number 2 ( Moon ) since Numbers 2 and 7 always go hand in hand.

Saif will be entering the 39th year ( 3 + 9 = 12 = 1 + 2 = 3 ) of his life which is definitely not amongst his lucky numbers, but the year 2008 ( 2 + 0 + 0 + 8 = 10 = 1 + 0 = 1 ) which adds up to Number 1 will do some damage control since it is one of his best numbers