Actor Saif Ali Khan has revealed that he was instinctively drawn to the world of “Kartavya”, which he described as a gripping, well-crafted story with compelling characters. Directed by Pulkit, known for his work on “Bhakshak”, the crime drama follows a police officer, played by Khan, as he navigates rising threats while grappling with the weight of duty and the safety of his family. As the lines between right and wrong begin to blur, the film unfolds as a layered exploration of power, guilt, and the consequences of silence.
“I dove into ‘Kartavya’ because I love the script. I think it is a great drama and a really interesting, almost international kind of piecing together of things. I had not read a script like this, and people who read it and discussed it at the time said that this is one of the best roles that have come my way,” Khan told PTI in an interview. The actor noted that “Kartavya” has an international feel, in which his character, a policeman named Pawan, is pushed to take extreme decisions.
“The world is beautifully crafted, the kind of character he is, where he is from, how he speaks, the home, the things that are at risk, how it slowly establishes what is happening. He might be a bit fed up with the way life is going, and then it slowly builds. You add pressure in these scenes, and he starts reacting,” the 55-year-old actor said. Khan also addressed comparisons between his role in “Kartavya” and his widely acclaimed performance as Langda Tyagi in the 2006 film “Omkara”.
“‘Omkara’ is Hindi heartland. I think the voice might sound a little similar; the accent might be similar,” he said. When asked about choosing roles in an industry often dominated by larger-than-life spectacles, Khan said his approach has always been guided by instinct rather than scale. “I've tried to play whatever is the best of what I'm offered and how I'm feeling. My manager at the time had said, ‘We're kind of platform agnostic, we will do anything within reason, if we like it’,” he added.
Having straddled between mainstream cinema and offbeat films like “Agent Vinod”, “Race”, “Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior”, “Devara”, “Ek Hasina Thi”, “Being Cyrus”, and “Laal Kaptaan”, Khan said he seamlessly moves between genres. “I enjoyed playing the villain in ‘Tanhaji’, I loved playing ‘Sacred Games’ as a web show. So, you mix it up as much as you can, and I just get a lot of satisfaction and happiness from doing a good job,” he explained.
Produced by Gauri Khan under Red Chillies Entertainment, “Kartavya” is set to release on Netflix on May 15. The film also stars actors Sanjay Mishra and Zakir Hussain, among others.
