When Sajid Khan's last film Himmatwala sank without a trace at the box office, it set many tongues wagging. After all, the fiasco was preceded by the director's hits like Heyy Babyy and Housefull 1 and 2. And buzz is that Saif Ali Khan, whose next film is to be helmed by Sajid, is feeling the heat.
A source says, `Himmatwala's fate didn't deter Sajid from announcing his next with Saif, Amitabh Bachchan and Riteish Deshmukh.
The shooting is all set to start from July. But incidentally, Saif is in a phase of his career where he is reinventing himself. Given the way Himmatwala bombed at the box office, the actor is feeling jittery.`
An industry insider tells us, `Just like Himmatwala, Sajid said even his next would become a blockbuster. And after he left the scene, everyone was hoping the film doesn't meet with Himmatwala's fate.`
Action replay? No way!
An actor who was part of Sajid Khan's Himmatwala hopes that the director's next film with Saif and Riteish lives up to be an entertainer.
Says the actor, `We had a lot of expectations from Himmatwala. We were shocked by the response it received from the audience. Sajid felt he would connect with them but this time he just could not. It came as a big disappointment that the film proved to be a disaster. The entertainment quotient did not work at all.`
The actor adds, `I hope Sajid's next film is better. I hope he is able to make a film that will connect with the audience. And not just with him!`
-- Shaheen Parkar