‘I am a very serious man’

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Sajid Khan might be a laugh riot but few know that beneath this exterior lies a core hardened by years of hardship that he faced during childhood.
He says his comic sense comes from surfing this thin line between riches and poverty. “Yes. Not many know that my father directed C grade films starring Dara Singh etc. He wanted to make it big in Bollywood though he failed to do so. My father invested a crore in a multi-starrer film in 1970 but it could not be completed. Having lost everything, we literally came on the roads. After my mother’s separation from him, we became homeless with no money. I have lived in a slum area, Bharat Nagar. Imagine me dealing with the rich kids in school and the poor kids in the slum,” says the director of Housefull 2.
“For me films were food but mom always wanted me to study. I was just in Class IV when I started weaving my own stories. I would always reach school late and whenever my teachers asked me why I was such a ‘late-Lateef’ I would spin long yarns. The students and even the teachers loved to hear my tales. It was then that I thought that since I was putting my mind and energy in entertaining these guys, I should earn from the happiness I gave them. I started asking them to give me a pencil, pen, anything. I started earning from there.”
Remembering a time when he wanted to watch the Dilip Kumar-starrer Majdoor, he says, “I had some `13-14 and the tickets cost `25. My friend and I decided to cash in on our entertaining talents. We went to Juhu Beach and I entertained visitors by dancing, singing and performing mimicry. Finally, we collected `60 and enjoyed the movie. I have never felt insulted in making money out of my talent. People think that I am all fun but no one has tried to see the serious side of life which I have undergone. In my heart I am a serious man.”
At 40, Sajid has finally decided to tie the knot after a colourful bachelorhood. “By no means am I gay. I have had my share of flings. I have cheated on women I dated. I would date two girls at the same time. When I look back, I regret these misconducts. Today I am a changed man. I am in love. In a couple of years I shall get married to her. I am not going to share whether she is Indian or foreign. All that I can confirm is that she is from planet earth.”
Coming to his relationship with his sister Farah Khan, he says, “Farah is much more experienced and intelligent than me. We share a very friendly relationship. Her kids Diva, Czar and Anya love me a lot and I cannot live without them. Czar is a spoilt brat and he loves to live life king size. Diva is doll-like and she is my favourite while Anya is very intelligent. Shirish Kunder (Farah’s husband) is on the quieter side. We don’t interact much but we respect each other.”
Coming back to his mother he says, “I live with her and I make sure that she enjoys all the comforts of life. How can I forget that she once earned `400 to make both ends meet? Yes! Sometimes she gets on my nerves by preaching to me about not to do this and that. But we are happy in our own world.”