It’s normal to give religious legitimacy to anything you really want to sell: Saif Ali Khan

He describes wine as a metaphor for life. He believes in the theory of Karl Marx – that the world is made up of the haves and have-nots. At 48, he confesses: “I am understanding things differently. I feel grounded and get a sense that I have arrived mentally in a place.” In the mood for some philosophy, a brush with politics and history, actor Saif Ali Khan opens up about his growth as an actor, his thoughts about religion in today’s times and the current mood of the industry in relation to the #MeTooIndia movement. Excerpts...You’ve done Kaalakaandi this year which was a quirky, dark comedy. Your next Baazaar will see you as a sharp and shrewd businessman. You are shooting for Hunter and will also be seen as an anti-hero in Ajay Devgn’s Taanaji. How do you assess your journey as an actor?I think I am getting better and am also enjoying it more than ever, which at least for me is a deciding factor as to how good you are. Films have changed and it’s very much in sync with how I think. I didn’t enjoy the 90s, I was trying to survive and find a place for myself. Omkara was the beginning of serious acting and even with Baazaar which is a commercial movie, it is serious acting. I remember Shah Rukh Khan once told me that the first audience is the director. He said people watch a director’s movies, and so the first guy you should impress is the director. And if he is impressed then you are doing your job properly. I think I am understanding things differently now. I feel more grounded.You seem to be in a philosophical space...I think we are all philosophers in our own way. Everyone has to be philosophical in order to sensibly get through the day. I just think we should know what we are talking about. I think a mixture of politics, philosophy and economics is important to understand the world. It’s kind of an organic energy where you attract what you deserve somehow, at least I think I do. But the philosophy has to be correct that I want to entertain, I want to do good films. It’s not about surviving, it’s about being better and eventually commanding the position by being brilliant at it. Even if you haven’t been successful, you curl up and get really insecure and I am not like that. The idea is to be radiant because you know how to do your job and you are the kind of person, irrespective of a hit or a flop. I feel quite blessed that I can do that. So obviously the energy is coming from somewhere else, it’s not coming from success or failure, it’s coming from enjoying the work.You’ve played quite a few dark characters. In Baazaar also there seem to be a hint of grey. In Taanaji, you play an anti-hero..Personalities can be like crude oil. I remember studying something in basic geography like distilled crude oil and it’s magic like black gold because apparently at the lowest level it is tar for roads and at the highest levels it is aviation fuel. I think an actor’s energy is also different. We get slotted really fast and people are dying to slot you. I think all these definitions need to be chucked out because we are living in revolutionary times and one of the things that are changing is the definition of an actor and a star.Talking about the current atmosphere, does it hurt that everything today is given a religious spin – be it the name of a city, a movie or personal choices?You have to give things a religious spin. It is amazing. If you have a certain knowledge of history and know how the world works, then none of this is that frightening. Because it’s quite normal to give religious legitimacy to anything you really want to sell.And is this working for India?We are growing and you tend to go in various directions. You go right wing and then you come liberal and then the liberals fail. Marx says it’s all class struggle, I think he’s right. It is all class struggle actually. It’s all about money and haves and have nots across the world. If you want to give your kingdom and your ruler-ship legitimacy, you talk about the divine right to rule. If you talk about the law being respected, you talk about the 10 Commandments. Ayatollah Khomeini’s economic policy will be couched in Quranic terms. Like Marx said: Religion is the opium of the masses. It makes perfect sense.Does it offend you?I am not offended. I think it is really normal, everyone needs a story. The story you are selling is that of Mughal invasion. I am a secular Indian, but I must be a minority because I believe in inter caste marriage, I believe in women’s rights, I don’t beat up someone who my sister dates. How does my opinion count? I am saying don’t change the name of Peddar road, don’t change the name of Aurangzeb road. I think all these names are important to our culture. But it won’t apply to people wanting votes and selling a story. Everyone wants to make their country great again. That’s what Brexit is. They want to make England number one again. They don’t need to pay those tariffs. Trump wants to make America great again and we want to make India great again and what better way than to change the name of the city, forget the British and forget the Mughals and go back to Chandragupta Maurya and rewrite history. We are not the only people who’ve done it. It’s nothing to be really scared of. Because history and knowledge has always been the realm of those who are willing to dig for it. They’ll always be selling a version. But I would rather live in a country that celebrated Alexander the great and the Mughals and the British. We are fine with their legal system and we are fine with their democracy, but we are not fine with the name of the city. So that thinking is not on the same intellectual level as me. But it is not about me. It is about a billion people who are struggling .You have been vocal about the #MeToo movement... you have taken a stand and supported the idea that one should not work with people who have misused their positions of power. Should there also be a stronger action that can work as a deterrent to ensure this is never repeated. It’s definitely the tip of the iceberg because behaviour and attitudes have to change. But I think a lot has changed. There’s been a tremendous outcry and backlash. People are losing their jobs, losing their friends losing all credibility and being persona non grata. This is not a victory, but it is definitely going to make people think one million times before disrespecting a woman. It is huge because there is result and it is not just reputation, people have lost their jobs and their friends and probably their families. You won’t be seeing Vikas Bahl again. That’s not nothing. What more can you take from a guy than his life. But then attitudes will also have to change. Top Rated Hindi Movies of 2018