Saif Ali Khan has maintained that it took him a long time to figure out his voice and niche as an actor. It began with his turn of Sameer in Farhan Akhtar’s 2001 seminal buddy movie Dil Chahta Hai. Saif broke through as the go-to metrosexual guy in Hindi cinema. But 10 years ago, another drastically different film exploited an intense side of his acting persona that he banked on much later with projects like Laal Kaptaan (2019), Sacred Games, and his new Netflix India movie, Kartavya.“When you look back at your career, not everything is a highlight. There are some highlights, and that’s good enough. Omkara is definitely something I’m proud of. Sacred Games even more so, in a way. I don’t think if there’s a connection between the two, but they both stood out when you look back at some pieces of work that stand out in shining letters,” Saif tells SCREEN in an exclusive interview.But his discovery of this side of himself didn’t happen on his own. It came from a much needed pep talk by his mother and veteran actor Sharmila Tagore. “There was a time when she told me you’re not sounding like a very interesting actor. You have to balance your choices and think more creatively. That was when I was taking things for granted a bit,” recalls Saif.While he doesn’t exactly remember if it came up in the 1990s or the early 2000s — “It’s been a while, and there have been phases” — he’s mentioned previously that it was a response to him telling his mother that he’s excited to shoot for a film in France. “When are you going to tell me you’re doing an interesting role?,” asked Sharmila. “She saw more potential. So, she was nudging me in her way to wake up,” admits Saif, smiling.Which is why Saif admits that the advent of streaming in India came with exciting opportunities for him to work with filmmakers like Anurag Kashyap, Vikramaditya Motwane, and Pulkit, with whom he wouldn’t have necessarily collaborated in the traditional theatrical system. Pulkit, the director of his new film Kartavya, also recently admitted streaming projects come as a relief to him after the mounting pressure of his last theatrical release, Maalik (2025), starring Rajkummar Rao.“I don’t know if it should be seen as a relief,” Saif argues. “There have always been all kinds of filmmakers. There are some commercial ones with their eyes on the Friday number, which means there’s a certain kind of energy required for that, whatever that is, I don’t know. But then there are some filmmakers with more artistic scope, who didn’t have an option but to release their films in the same way,” he adds.Also Read — Amitabh Bachchan says he’s spending sleepless nights at 83: ‘Work is more important than sleep’Story continues below this adSaif considers streaming to be “an important, alternate expression” given to some of these filmmakers. “There are some films I’d love to work in, which people wouldn’t take a chance with to release in theatres. But I think even Netflix and other streaming platforms want you to get entertained, so it’s all eventually competitive,” he adds.Click here to follow Screen Digital on YouTube and stay updated with the latest from the world of cinema.© IE Online Media Services Pvt Ltd