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Journalism of Courage
What8217;s odd about all the attention and hype around Zayed Khan is that it8217;s coming even before his first film. On the sets of Chura Liyaa Hai Tumne, he8217;s already something of a mini-star, lighting up his Marlboro and puffing away as he sits before the video assist studying his last shot carefully and from every angle, before he goes on to give the next.
Since the basis for the buzz quite certainly cannot be any evidence of his talent Zayed himself says that nobody, his parents included, has been allowed to see the rushes of his film, you assume it8217;s his looks that are drawing the initial attention. Alas, today is not a good day to put that theory to test either, considering much of his face and the most part of his body is splattered in fake blood for the action scene he is shooting.
Moments later, ensconced in a chair inside his air-conditioned make-up van, the 24-year-old newsmaker offers an insight into his personality in the hope of helping you figure out why he8217;s being tipped to be the Next Big Thing.
Modest Beginnings
8216;8216;I grew up watching my father8217;s movies, and I was also a big fan of Superman and Batman,8217;8217; Zayed reveals. 8216;8216;For a long time I based my personality on that of a hero,8217;8217; he says, explaining his fondness for dressing up in a Superman suit and pretending to accomplish heroic feats. Once a little older, 8216;8216;being an actor became a synonym for being dumb and stupid8217;8217;, so the thought of wanting to be one didn8217;t cross his mind. Finally, it was in his late teens 8216;8216;my flower power days8217;8217;, while he was studying Business Administration in the US, that he decided that acting was, after all, his true calling.
With most of his family in the profession his father is 8217;70s heart-throb Sanjay Khan, his uncle is actor-filmmaker Feroz Khan, you would think they8217;d welcome his decision to follow in their footsteps. 8216;8216;Hell no! My dad was hugely disappointed. He was rather keen I become a lawyer, and we had many of those father-son arguments at the dinner table,8217;8217; Zayed remembers.
A fair amount of cajoling, and serious evidence that his heart was set on an acting career including a course in film studies at the London Film School made his father eventually warm up to the idea.
Two years later, back from film school, and now 12 years away from home 8216;8216;I was at boarding school at 118217;8217;, he says he felt a little 8216;8216;alienated8217;8217; and also felt the need 8216;8216;to become more Indian8217;8217;. What followed were a series of classes in preparation for a typical Bollywood debut 8212; gym training, diction and language lessons, acting lectures, the works.
Before long, he was signed by Universal Music to star in a breezy romantic they were planning to produce.
Kick-off Career
As luck would have it though, the Universal project got delayed, and Zayed walked out of it and right into Chura Liyaa Hai Tumne, which Sangeeth Sivan would be directing for Pantaloon Fashions. 8216;8216;I was ripe as an apple, so I had to carry on,8217;8217; the young actor says of opting out of what was meant to be his debut vehicle.
8216;8216;This one8217;s an action thriller, with romance the by-product,8217;8217; he says of Sivan8217;s film in which he8217;s cast opposite Esha Deol. 8216;8216;It8217;s a very human story, tapping into everything from conceit and deception to love, anger and revenge,8217;8217; he says, refusing to confirm information that his character in the film is not your typical clean-cut good-guy. 8216;8216;Negative characters do excite me, but they have to have a reason to be that way. Nobody8217;s born bad,8217;8217; he says, adding elusively that 8216;8216;the redemption of every character 8212; whether black, white or grey 8212; has to come from an incident personal to them.8217;8217;
What8217;s all the Noise About?
Okay, so maybe much of the buzz comes from being Hrithik Roshan8217;s brother-in-law and Fardeen Khan8217;s cousin, but really that8217;s not qualification enough to be anointed the Next Big Thing. 8216;8216;I find it quite funny, but believe me, it8217;s not the least bit my concern,8217;8217; Zayed says of all the alarm bells he8217;s set off in Bollywood. 8216;8216;If anything, I8217;m sceptical of hype, because my performance has to match the expectations.8217;8217;
Then again, considering he beat Abhishek Bachchan, Vivek Oberoi and Sohail Khan for a parallel role to Shah Rukh Khan in choreographer Farah Khan8217;s directorial debut, it8217;s not like the chatter he8217;s generating is all gratuitous.
The Future8217;s SO Bright8230;
Explaining that he8217;s like a sponge now, 8216;8216;soaking up everything that8217;s coming my way 8212; the advice, the suggestions, the warnings8217;8217;, Zayed says he8217;s also filtering out what is important and what8217;s not. He describes the job as 8216;8216;tasting wine8217;8217; because he8217;s on a constant high. 8216;8216;Right now, work is what excites me because I get to play different people and understand different characters,8217;8217; he says. The quirkier, the better, Zayed adds. 8216;8216;Sticking your neck out a little bit is a risk, but one worth taking,8217;8217; he believes.
