He is the youngest child of well known actor Sanjay Khan and his beautiful wife Zarine, the much wanted son born after 3 sisters.Yet the current teenage heart throb come across as anything but spoilt.
His debut performance as part of the Rock Stars tour was greatly appreciated, and in an exclusive with Kavita Chhibber, Zayed Khan talks about the growing years, his foray into films and why he didn’t want father Sanjay Khan to launch him.
Is it true that your mom would be absolutely sure each time she was pregnant that it would be a boy and she would name him Ali, and then have a girl instead?
How did you know that? It’s absolutely true. I guess both my parents were very keen for a boy, something that isn’t such a big deal anymore now, but it was then perhaps, and each time she did think Ali was going to arrive. In fact when my third sister was born she was so disappointed she wouldn’t look at the baby, until the nurse came to her and said, “Madam you are very strange. This is the most beautiful baby I have ever seen.” Mom took a reluctant peek and fell instantly in love. I arrived after that.
So were you spoilt?
Well I suppose I was to some extent. Having three older sisters and a mom is like having four moms in the house, but I think it really gave me a great understanding of how amazing women can be. It taught me respect for women, it made me admire their strength and yes it taught me to say sorry even if it wasn’t my fault! I think it was a blessing really.
My mother is the most amazing woman I know. To bring up four pretty grounded kids, away from the fake world of films, star wives, starry parties, and see through the façade, handle complicated relationships, is a tough job. She is the biggest superstar in our house.
Dad has been my coach, in some ways giving me a pretty frank opinion about anything even if it hurts, and constantly pushing me to excel. It was irritating at times, but as you grow older you begin to understand that it’s their own method, to teach you. I realize now that he has been quite an inspiration in many ways. But my mom like the true Parsi woman that she is was the one determined to make her son a successful, well rounded man, and she knew when I needed what, to move forward.
You went to a boarding school at a young age. That must have been hard for mom. Is it true you asked her not to kiss you in front of all the other boys before leaving and she did just that?
You know even that? Well it’s true. The boys had quite a field day ragging me about it after she left. Actually I was about 11, when my father faced the fire that raged on his production sets. He was badly burnt and it was a long recovery. I was 11 then, old enough to know what had happened but not old enough to understand the gravity of the situation. At that time somehow my family felt I should be shielded from the situation and decided I should be sent to a boarding school. I think it was hard for mom to let go, but even harder to see the condition of the dorm in which I had to live. I think that experience taught me a lot about real life. I folded my own clothes, polished my own shoes, took cold showers and learnt that there was a world out there that was not as affluent as the one I knew. I learnt about team spirit, about my country, because there were kids from all kinds of backgrounds from all parts of the country. I think it allowed me to grow up in a way I probably wouldn’t have, had I stayed on in Mumbai. I learnt a lot about relationships and friendship there. Still having been sent away at a time when my dad was in a tough situation has made me very deeply conscious of what they went through. Today all I think of is that I must do everything to make sure they never have to face what they did then. I just want to take good care of them, because they have given so much to their children.
So did you see any of dad’s films? And I did read somewhere that you always had it at the back of your mind to become an actor.
My all time favorite film has been Abdullah. I must have seen it twice a day every day for a long time. I have also loved the way dad was able to extract a superb performance from Raj Kapoor who was a close friend of my father’s.
Yes I always wanted to be an actor but I had this illusion that since I’m Sanjay Khan’s son I will be given everything on a platter. I used to just while away my time, quite complacent about everything. When I told dad, I wanted to be an actor, he told me quite bluntly, that he saw nothing in me at that point that indicated I had it in me to be an actor. I was very hurt, but he was right. It was mom who came to my room and said, okay so you want to be an actor. Then go and prepare yourself to be one. Get the tools you need to make it.
I have this poem in my room which has become my mantra. It’s a well known poem which says
I asked for Strength………
And God gave me Difficulties
to make me strong.
I asked for Wisdom………
And God gave me Problems to solve.
I asked for Prosperity………
And God gave me Brain and Brawn
to work.
I asked for Courage………
And God gave me Danger to overcome.
I asked for Love………
And God gave me Troubled people
to help.
I asked for Favours………
And God gave me Opportunities.
I received nothing I wanted
I received everything I needed
My Prayer has been answered
It took me four years of tremendous work to get ready. I took martial arts classes, acting glasses, dancing classes which I just loved. Today’s actor has to be a complete package and when I started out I was far from it.
So why did you not ask your father to launch you? Your uncle Feroz Khan launched your cousin Fardeen.
My father is a very hard task master. Also I just feel I can never act in front of my dad. I don’t know if it is because he knows me so well, or my fear that if I don’t agree with him on how a certain scene should be shot, I wont be able to say it out of respect for him. I also think I was very adamant that I didn’t want to be known as Sanjay Khan’s son. To find Zayed, Zayed had to go to production houses who didn’t give a damn about who’s son I was. I wanted to be with people who chose me because they saw something in me and I could only do that by venturing out on my own. I didn’t want to fill any one else’s shoes. I wanted to walk in my own.
Chura Liya Hai was your first film and it turned out to be quite a fun film with some outstanding stunts.What was it that you discovered about yourself?
That I had a lot to offer. My father didn’t agree with me when I chose to do Chura Liya. But then I thought, do I just sit there whiling away my time for 4-5 years waiting for a big banner to happen to me, or do I take a chance and accept what is there right in front of me, because it seemed a decent project. I have always been very sure about one thing. I don’t want to live my life based on the experiences of others. I want to create my own successes and learn from my own mistakes. I think I was really raw in the film and that worked to my advantage. I didn’t feel any pressure. Today I do, because with each film and more experience I know there are better, and many more ways of doing any given role that I am enacting. I learnt a very valuable lesson from Shahrukh Khan. He told me conserve and control your energy otherwise you’ll burn out and he was right.
My dad has hated some of the films I’ve accepted, but the cool thing is that since I’ve made my own decisions, we can disagree without being disagreeable.
Let’s talk about Shabd and Vaada. In Shabd you played a younger man in love with an older woman opposite Aishwarya Rai. In Vaada you played an obsessive lover who finally loses control and is out to destroy the very woman he loves so much. Considering you were in your early twenties were those roles tough to do? Also is it true that you stood under a crossing train and wished to act opposite Aishwarya Rai one day?
Well, I’m not joking about this, there is a fable that if you stand under any place in Bombay where a train is crossing above and wish for something, the wish comes true. So one day, there I was, standing under the path of a train and as the train went over me I said, well what do I wish for and then I said I wish to work with Aishwarya Rai one day because I admire her so much. Before I knew it I was being given the narration for Shabd, a story about this older, married woman who finds her self drawn to this younger man. I said that is a fabulous narration. Then director Leena Yadav said to me, “Oh, by the way, we are thinking of Aishwarya to do the female lead.” I was stunned though I said nonchalantly, oh really. Shooting with Aishwarya was a blast and we got along like a house on fire. She is such a fun loving, truly nice person, but as we sat on the beach in Goa, laughing and joking, I thought to myself, this is such a strange yet special moment, that wish came true.
As for the movie, I don’t think age has anything to do with wisdom or understanding of life. I felt totally at ease with Shabd. The theme of older woman younger man relationships had not caught on then as it has now, so I was really glad that Indian cinema was looking at a subject that was a very real part and parcel of our lives. I liked my role, of this positive, fun loving man, who adores this woman and the fact that at one point she wants to give in to the experience. Unfortunately Shabd was a classic case of the script not being translated to screen that successfully and the movie didn’t shape up that wel. Maybe it was a difficult concept to translate on screen, but I enjoyed doing the movie and I admire Leena for being such a deep thinker and so cutting edge in her choice of subjects.
As for Vaada, it was interesting when Vashuji came to me and said, “I am offering you a negative role and in that Arjun Rampal is 20 percent then you are 16 percent in terms of weightage.” I said, oh great I’ve already been demoted to a negative role so soon in my career, but after I heard the narration, I was excited by what I felt could be done with the role.
I have been around and been in situations where even the nicest of people can act contrary to their nature when they obsess about something or someone. In obsessive love there is no regular way of doing things; there is a deep profound sense of blind belief that whatever the person is doing is right and they ignore the fact that it can hurt a lot of people. More than it being destructive, I think it is a terribly sad tragedy. So I told Vashuji that you have to give this character some redemption at the end. I think the role turned out well and at the end I felt it was no longer a 20-16 equation, but a well balanced parallel performance.
You acted in Shaadi No 1. Its every actor’s dream these days to act in a film directed by David Dhawan. How was the experience?
I can only say this, if you want to act under David Dhawan, do not bring your script to the sets. Davidji hates prepared, methodical actors. He wants you to come to the sets with a smile, he will tell you the scene and you have to improvise and deliver. The first time I stood there poring over my dialogues, he said, “What are you doing?” And promptly tore my script to pieces. I came on the sets of Shaadi No 1 at all kinds of random times, shot all kinds of scenes, and before I knew it the film was ready. There is some method I’m sure in his madness, but the end result always turns out to be a film every one seems to enjoy watching.
The role that catapulted you to fame was the blockbuster Main Hoon Na with Shahrukh Khan and directed by ace choreographer Farah Khan. Many kids just remember you as Lucky, the character you played. It was an all-round, feel good fun film with great music. You also said the character was a lot like the real you? Were you such a trouble maker?
I have done a lot of wild things in my life, from sneaking into Welham’s girls hostel to meet this girl I liked and being caught by this Nepali watchman that I used to bribe, but who caught me. Instead of feeling embarrassed I was initially really mad at the watchman for swallowing my moolah and turning me in, the ungrateful guy! My punishment was there for all to see, though! I was a mischief maker in college too. I guess I tried not to break the law but still see how far I could go!
Farah is like an older sister, but she is also extremely outspoken and doesn’t hesitate to call a spade a spade. Both Shahrukh Khan and she are such powerhouses of knowledge that one can learn decades of acting nuances by just working with them in one film. We used to fight a lot and she would yell at me all the time. I once remember we were to shoot this song in Darjeeling and the air was very thin at the height where we were shooting. It was a one shot thing because if we stopped we would lose the impact of what was coming immediately after the song. So we had already had 12 takes, and the air was getting thinner and thinner. Here I’m dancing away when two-three dancers in the troupe keel over and faint. So I stop and she screams, “Why are you stopping?” I say these people are lying here unconscious. She yells, “Then dance over them dammit.” I go ahead dancing and prancing with this fixed grin on my face wondering if those women were going to die, and as soon as we finished I said cut. Farah got even madder and yelled, “How dare you say Cut on my sets.”
When it comes to giving my opinion if I don’t like the way a scene is being shot, I often go ahead and argue it out with some directors, but I’ve learn that with Farah it’s best to keep your mouth shut, simply because your best opinion will not be at par with what she finally comes up with. I loved the film and being with Shahrukh Khan who has always been such an inspiration for me.
People have always joked that Sunjay Dutt and Salman Khan took their shirts off and it has now become a trend for men to strip on screen in every Bollywood film. You need to have a well toned body to take that shirt off. However on the heels of this focus on fitness come the disturbing media reports that steroid use is rampant in the film industry.
Well there is an easy way to fitness and there is a hard way to fitness. There are terrible long term effects for steroid users, but so many people get caught up in the glitter of wanting to be in the limelight, or on the cover of a magazine. The lure of fame and money is a powerful magnet, it drives people to do all sorts of things. I feel bad for them, but I can’t be judgmental because so many of these aspiring actors/models, have no one in the film industry to help their careers. While I never took my father’s help, his name attached to mine will always open doors for me. These people on the other hand know they have only one chance perhaps at stardom and they do everything they can to make an impact.
I make it a point to work out at various gyms around town where all the aspiring actors and models work out. It is mind boggling to see the amount of hard work some of them put at the gym and that too for a two minute shot they may have in some film. It keeps me humble and grounded, and also puts things in perspective for someone like me who had expected it all to be given to me on a platter.
I injured my back during a shooting six months ago, and ended up with a slipped disc, but before that I had a very punishing schedule. I began my day with a run and a two-three hours workout at the gym, a minimum of four-five times a week, working out every body part, alternating it with martial arts. Again the nature of our work is such that it makes everything so erratic: late night shootings, dinners, parties, etc., and one has to be very careful to find the balance there as well.
You talked about hurting your back. It seems more and more actors are doing their own stunts. Your brother-in law, actor Hritik Roshan had a near miss when he fell almost 50 feet during a shoot in Singapore, after the harness holding him above broke. Why court danger like that? Shahrukh Khan seems to have a chronic back problem now because he chose to do his own stunts for so long.
I think that is why Shahrukh told me to conserve that uncontrolled energy. I think we are perhaps better trained in martial arts, etc. than our actors in my dad’s time were, and maybe its because deep down we really believe we can do those difficult stunts and get away with it. Cinema is larger than life and people who watch films can see when the artist is doing his own stunts and when it’s a double. For me the motivation is to give my fans the real thing. My elders feel that I’m stupid to think like that but I think that is what separates the men from the boys, but it is risky business all the same.
So what’s in the works?
There are two films I’m really excited about – Vikram Bhatt’s Rocky, about a vigilante who believes in what he does and another film Cash. I’m looking at different scripts and trying to make sure that I don’t get stuck with similar roles. I think I can do justice to all genres and I also have a very highly developed aesthetic sense about film making. I want to make sure I do stuff where all that I have to offer is utilized to its fullest potential.