Enjoyed playing a homosexual on-screen: Saqib Saleem

Saqib Saleem

While everybody in the industry was working hard to contribute to 100 years of Indian cinema, newbie actor Saqib Saleem also thought of making his contribution in the 100th year of the industry, but in a slightly different way. 

Saqib shot a smooch scene with Randeep Hooda in Karan Johar's film, as a way of tribute through the film Bombay Talkies. Saqib's contribution showcased how cinema has grown. Earlier, a kissing scene was depicted on-screen by showing two flowers crossing one another. And in this modern age, shooting a smooch scene is not a big deal, irrespective of the sex of the person.

We asked Saqib what made him go for it and he replies, "I am very competitive with myself so I took it as a challenge, I just thought whether I can pull it off or not. I knew Karan was directing me and I trusted him. One needs to have a comfort level with the director. I knew he will make sure it does not look sleazy and will capture it well. As an actor, anybody would like to experiment and play different characters and I felt the same when I was offered this role."

"In my first film, I kissed a girl and nobody said anything on that. Now in my third film, I kissed a guy and the media has made a hue and cry about it. I am an actor so I have to do my work and going beyond societal norms. And my on-screen act is just an "act" and I am not the same in my real life. People need to differentiate me from my roles. I enjoyed playing that character in all honesty," the model-turned-actor added.

Saqib shares how he prepared for the role, "I come from modeling background and I have a lot of gay friends. I wanted to play that character well so that it doesn't portray homosexuals in a negative light. I had a lot of discussions with Karan and my gay friends on how to showcase a particular scene on-screen.

"It was a learning experience for me and I thoroughly enjoyed the role. To be directed by Karan Johar and to act in a movie alongside Rani Mukherji and be a part of film that pays tribute to 100 years of Indian cinema, what else can I ask for?" says Saqib overwhelmingly
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