1 / 2Saif Ali Khan reckons while Bollywood's insular approach may not harm its bottom line, it could be 'dangerous' for the industry's developmentSaif Ali Khan, bonafide Bollywood royalty and star of Netflix hit"Sacred Games", says India's massive film industry does not need international audiences to thrive. But that may not be a good thing, he cautions.
"The thing about our culture... is that we don't really need verification, validation, appreciation from an outside culture," Khan told AFP in Mumbai. "Cinema is about people meeting, comparing, collaborating because the human condition is quite similar. But if we isolate ourselves... I think we will lose out on something because we will keep catering just to ourselves," he said.
"I think Sartaj Singh did a lot for me. People who don't usually watch Hindi films watched 'Sacred Games'... and working with all those people in that environment helped my acting a lot," he said.The first big name from Bollywood to embrace digital entertainment, Khan said the ambition displayed by Netflix and others has the potential to upend the status quo, even in movie-mad India.
For his part, he has played everything from a commitment-shy chef in the 2005 hit"Salaam Namaste" to a murderous drifter in the 2006 black comedy"Being Cyrus" to a Shakespearean villain in"Omkara", an Indian adaptation of"Othello".