
‘Kareena’s mom (Babita) and I constantly message one another. I’m as much in touch with her as I am with my own mom. I’ve met Kareena’s dad a few times. And we get along fine,’ Saif, who is currently busy with his home production, told IANS on phone from San Francisco.
‘I’ve been a part of their family functions many times. I feel very close to her family. Whenever she’s at a family function, I try to be part of it,’ he said.
Saif says both Kareena and he have learnt to be discreet.
‘We’ve learnt to be careful in our public utterances. As a celebrity one has to be careful. One can’t sit around being offended by the public attention.’
Excerpts from an interview:
Q: There’re rumours in Mumbai that you and Deepika Padukone just can’t get along. That you had a showdown with her when you were shooting with her for Imtiaz Ali’s film in London?
A: This is utter rubbish. I can’t believe people are saying such things. There isn’t an ounce of truth in this. Deepika is a thorough professional. During the time we shot together in London I found her to be very hardworking and focussed on her work. Beyond that I don’t know her at all.
Q: In a way London is your home, right?
A: Now I’m shooting with Imtiaz in San Francisco. Yes, London is a second home. But it’s annoying to be working there. I don’t get to socialise. If I’m lucky, I get to catch a late dinner. Then I’ve to sleep because I’ve to be up for work early next morning.
Q: How’s your film with Imtiaz progressing?
A: We’re about 30 percent done. It’s extremely different and real and reflective of today’s relationships. It’s a contemporary film.
Q: What’s the film called?
A: Nothing yet. We hope to get a title soon. Any suggestions?
Q: According to a section of the press, it’s called ‘Elastic’?
A: What? Why would I call my film that? Hopefully, we’ll have a title before long. I know what we went through to find a name for my last release ‘Thoda Pyaar Thoda Magic’.
Q: It’s being said that Kareena Kapoor’s parents don’t approve of you.
A: That’s absolute rubbish. Kareena’s mom and I constantly message one another. I’m as much in touch with her as I am with my own mom. I’ve met Kareena’s dad a few times. And we get along fine. I’ve been a part of their family functions many times. I feel very close to her family. Whenever she’s at a family function, I try to be part of it.
Q: How do you keep these family functions private?
A: Both Kareena and I have learnt to be discreet. We’ve learnt to be careful in our public utterances. As a celebrity one has to be careful. One can’t sit around being offended by the public attention.
Q: Why did you do so much publicity for ‘Race’ and so little for ‘Thoda Pyaar Thoda Magic’?
A: Not intentional. I was around in India to promote ‘Race’. I guess people go by the vibe of the movie. Some films seem to be more exciting than others irrespective of who stars in them. Would I watch ‘Thoda Pyaar…’? No I prefer American films. I don’t see that many Hindi films. So my choices are based on what people would like to see and what I’d like to do as my job.
Q: So you stand by ‘Thoda Pyaar Thoda Magic’?
A: I liked the idea of ‘Thoda Pyaar…’. It’s a split-second decision whether audiences would like to watch a film or not. The choice of films is like an investment. At the time I signed ‘Tashan’ and ‘Thoda Pyaar Thoda Magic’ they’d both be considered blue-chip ideas. Which fool wouldn’t do such films?
Some things work some don’t. You’ve got to be a man and accept the defeat on the chin and not blame the director, wipe the blood off the nose and move on to the next one. It’s still been a good year for me. ‘Race’ is a super hit. Everyone goes wrong.
Q: You still maintain there’s no production house like Yash Raj Films?
A: At a time when other producers didn’t know what I was capable of, Yash Raj believed in me. I owe the start of my career as a leading man to Yash Raj. As a producer I’ve been hugely influenced by the banner.
Q: How about blogging?
A: Not my scene, yaar. It’s too much of an open forum. At the moment, it’s too time consuming. I’d rather use the time for other activities.
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