by Subhash K Jha

Saif Sets The Record Straight From New York...

Q: What happened, Saif?
A: Absolutely nothing happened. I finished my day's work with Siddharth Anand and went to a bar for a drink. The owner was a young Indian. He asked me for a couple of pictures with his cousins. He offered to pay for my drinks and told me to come back any time. He was really polite, and so was I.

The next thing I know the NY Post carries an article that says I had a fight with Rani on the sets, which was bull-shit and that I threw my weight around at the bar which was slanderous. It's okay to write about an argument on the sets, though I didn't have one. But this?

Q: Is it untrue?
A: Subhash, misbehaving in public and being a bad boy isn't my scene. If anyone believes this about me then I've a lot to be worried about. I 've never misbehaved in public. Someone calls me up from Mumbai and point-blank asks if I was thrown out of the bar. It was very humiliating.

My immediate reaction was to sue the Post. But now I've decided to dismiss it as nasty Page 6 gossip. Incidentally they called me the hunky millionaire who behaved like he owned the bar. I don't mind the 'hunky millionaire' bit

Q: You're trying to make light of it...
A: What do I do? Everyday on the internet there's something objectionable about me or my family. I saw this rude comment about my parents...something about them being celebrities from the 18th century. I can't take rude comments like these about my family. I'm abroad working.

Since they've nothing to write about me, they jump on some putrid information from a gossip section of a NY paper. I hope people back home know it's pretty much impossible to throw me out of anywhere (laughs uproariously). You know, I now think kindly towards all those stars who've had the reputation of an enfant-terrible.

I won't say it was all undeserved. But now ? I was nothing but a humble patron in the bar. I was shocked, because my memory of the evening was how nice I was being to them. 'Well done, Saif,' I kept telling myself.

Q: How has the shooting schedule for Tara Rum Pam Pam been so far?
A: It's been good. Though it's been a long time away from home and I do miss my loved ones.

Q: Post-Omkara you're regarded as one of the most talented actors of the country.
A: Good, that's what I always wanted. But what do I do now???? I've to take some serious career decisions after I return in the first week of October.