Saif Ali Khan Speaks To Subhash K Jha On Omkara.

Q: Your last release Being Cyrus was in English. Omkara takes you into a rough UP lingo.
A: Now we're talking! I was hugely relieved and excited that the film generated positive news and some money. I know how little we spent on the film, trying to work fearlessly without caring about profits.

I was scared it would arrive after Salaam Namaste and expose my limitations. But I'm happy I've the range and reputation to carry off both. Yeah I could get away with Being Cyrus. That's good for our cinema.

Today so many filmmakers have the liberty to make so many kinds of cinema without getting mainstream. Being Cyrus was made with clockwork precision. It was an artistic experience.

Q: Being Cyrus and Omkara explain your range.
Everyone has a range. It's about actually exploring that range. And I'm doing that. I'm deep into Siddharth Anand's Tara Rum Pum Pum which is totally commercial. It focuses me in a flattering light.

Q: Omkara puts the film's main responsibility on your character?
A: I wouldn't go so far as to say that. Ajay Devgan's Othello is central to the conflict. But if my character of Langa Tyagi didn't work then nothing would happen. So it's my responsibility, but only as an actor. If you're taking about stars then there's Ajay Devgan, Viveik, Kareena, Bipasha and others.

Q: But in terms of plot propulsion Iago is central to Othello.
A: Right. There can be no Othello without Iago. And the better the Iago, the better the Othello.

Q: Kareena feels Omkara has changed her attitude to her career. What about you?
A: I can't speak for her. But I personally went through a phase where I wanted to cash in on my city-boy image..

You know the urban dude who fits in nicely in New York...I changed the tenor of the Hindi so it sounded more westernized....I really enjoyed that space. It was an image I thought I could capitalize on specially since people were writing roles specially for.

Q: Why not.
A: Yeah....specially since this image came with the luxury of shooting in a posh environment and cool climate. You'd have to agree the world of Omkara is absolutely removed from Hum Tum and Salaam Namaste.

Q: Would you say Omkara has weaned you away from your comfort zone?
A: But haven't I been doing that in my own way for some years now? While doing the urban cool of Dil Chahta Hai I also did Ek Haseena Thi where I was the scheming cad. And while I was doing Hum Tum I did Parineeta. I'd say films like Hum Tum and Salaam Namaste gave Yashraj Films a more fun image.

I remember after Parineeta I got myself a funky haircut and decided to have fun with Arshad Warsi in Melbourne for Salaam Namaste. Then when I was offered Omkara. I knew it was going to take me away from the luxury of Melbourne to the sweltering heat of Wai.

Getting my hair cut and preparing for the role in Omkara really appealed to the actor in me. I did my homework, played those lines over and over again in my head, figured out the mannerisms for my character. I actually felt like a real actor. It was absorbing and rewarding. But a role like Omkara doesn't happen every day.

Q: What about your female co-stars Kareena and Konkona?
A: I don't have that many scenes with Kareena. My co-star is Konkona. I had a different notion about her. I saw her as this National award-winning actress who was very different in her choices. But our moms(Aparna Sen and Sharmila Tagore) have been associated for years. That pre-determined our relationship.

I was aware of Konkona's reputation as an actor. I remember she did this big scene with all the actors. It required her to flit around the courtyard in a good mood. She did it bang-on. And I knew I was on to a good thing. I just felt happy to have done my homework and be on the set of this film.

Not like the Saif Ali khan that anyone would imagine. Vishal told me how theatre actors were smirking because he had apparently sold out to stars. Langda Tyagi and Saif Ali Khan? Doesn't jell.

Q: Is Omkara is a coming of age for you?
A: It certainly is. They first said I can only play the rich city boy. Then they said he's good for the second lead. For a long time I wasn't ready to play a village role. It daunted me. But the fact that it was Shakespeare egged me on. Iago was not quite my radar. When it came to me it excited me. And I think I've made something out of it.

I wouldn't do something that doesn't grab me. Shakespeare certainly is dramatic. There's action murder, drama, intrigue.... These are emotions that are important to the Indian temperament.

We're one of the few countries which has such a culturally diverse mass of audience. Shakespeare is a superstar who in his time catered to front-benchers as well as for a higher more sophisticated audience.

Q: Do you think Vishal has done justice to Othello?
A: Yes, I think he has captured the essence of Othello in Omkara. To a large extent Maqbool was a departure from Macbeth. In Omkara he stuck faithfully to Shakespeare, down to the nuances.

He has brought a new power and energy to the original. And the way he has dressed up Shakespeare in the Western UP's political mafia is stunning.