Bollywood star Saif Ali Khan appeared on the latest episode of the streaming chat show ‘Koffee With Karan’ with his mom Sharmila Tagore, and opened up on his separation from actress Amrita Singh.
The actor spoke about the emotional complexities that surrounded the separation and how his mother was always supportive to him.
Talking about the same, Saif Ali Khan said, “Unfortunately, doing it (the marriage) at 20 is young and things change, but she was a great support, she was wonderful to me and she is the mother of two of my kids. I share a good relationship with her and it’s all respectful now. It’s very bad when these things don’t work out. Especially for children, you don’t want that for kids.”
Karan Johar asked, “At that point of time, I think your mother has seen so much of life, with her experience that even when it didn’t work out, I am sure she was immensely supportive of you.”
Responding to that, Saif shared, “You know, she was supportive when I did it, she has told a very nice version of this. She told me, I believe you are living with somebody and you are doing something, so I said, yes. She said, Just don’t get married. And I said, I got married yesterday. And a big tear fell out of her eye and she started crying. She said, “You have really hurt me, why didn’t you tell me?”
Saif further mentioned, “Also, with the separation, the first person I spoke to before the separation was my mother who took a deep breath and there was another pause on the phone and said that I am with you if that’s what you want.”
Sharmila said: “When you are together for so long and you have two lovely children, then no break up is easy. And then if it isn’t a harmonious break up; I mean I know it is difficult to have harmony at that stage, everybody is hurt, so that stage was not nice.”
Karan asked, “Did you continue your relationship with Amrita?”
Sharmila said, “Yes yes, I did. But that’s water under the bridge, she needed time to cool down and they worked it out together, it is just not staying away, there are a lot of things and it wasn’t a happy time for us because Ibrahim was just three and we were very fond of the children. Tiger was especially fond of Ibrahim. And he would say, well that’s a good lad. He didn’t get that time, and we felt deprived to lose Amrita and lose the two kids. So, it’s not just him, we also had to adjust to all that.” Source: IANS
Tag: Amrita Singh
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Saif opens up on separation with Amrita Singh
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VIKAS KHANNA’S ROOFTOP PARTY CELEBRATES TRIBECA FEST’S LGBTQ+ FILM HONORS
By Mabel Pais
The Who’s Who of Manhattan celebrated the success in the Tribeca Film Festival 2022 of Naman Gupta’s LGBTQ+ short film ‘COMING OUT WITH THE HELP OF A TIME MACHINE’ at a rooftop party hosted by celebrity chef and filmmaker Vikas Khanna in Manhattan.
The film had its New York City premiere at the prestigious Tribeca Festival, as part of the closing night block of queer films on June 19. Guests of honor at Khanna’s private soiree included Bollywood actor and philanthropist Vivek Oberoi, Delhi fashion designer Mayyur Girotra, Jewelry designer Amrita Singh, Sufi Wines founder Sam Bhatia, New York City’s top realtor Jaswant Lalwani, the film’s producers Nav and Neetu Gupta and James and Teddy Orfanos and lead actors Karan Soni and Sangeeta Agrawal, to name a few. “I’ve always been on the forefront of supporting South Asian culture from the very beginning. My heart, my doors are always open to promote anything to do with South Asian food, arts, entertainment, fashion and culture,” said Khanna, who hosted the party on the rooftop of his Manhattan residence.
‘COMING OUT…….’ was one of 10 films with a Desi connection programmed at Tribeca, the most ever in the festival’s history. “It really feels like our time has come! There are a lot of people from the South Asian community who have pioneered and paved the way for us to stand where we are today, and with Tribeca giving so many of us the platform that we have, it’s truly a momentous year for the South Asian diaspora,” said Agrawal, who plays Soni’s homophobic mother in the film.
At the event, the director made the BIG announcement that the short film is being converted into an episodic television series: “The series is going to be a one-hour drama, and it’s not something that just the LGBTQ crowd or the South Asian crowd or the sci-fi crowd will enjoy. It’s a very international, mainstream, sci-fi, immigrant family drama inter-twined with a LGBTQ romance and rivalry, so I’m super excited about that,” said Gupta. The series is currently in development, and the core team is looking for additional producers and distributors to helm the project.
“I think it’s really interesting, given the timing of the film right now, especially during PRIDE Month. There are issues, especially within the Desi community, in terms of how parents or children are equipped to deal with coming out, and it is a difficult process for both. But you watch something like this, and it may just make you respond more sensitively…more with the heart rather than the perception of what will my community think of me, what will the world think of me…so less judgment and more love because at the end of the day, that’s what family is for,” said Oberoi, who was at the event to support long-time friends, producers Nav and Neetu Gupta.
For more information about the journey of the film and the development of the series, visit comingoutfilm.com.
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TRIBECA’S CLOSING NIGHT LGBTQ+ SHORTS
By Mabel Pais
DIRECTOR/WRITER NAMAN GUPTA’S “COMING OUT….” WINS FURTHER SUCCESS
WRITER SAILESH NAIDU’S “DOGFRIEND” MAKES MARK
The Tribeca Festival 2022 presented a slate of Pride programming. Pride is an integral part of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer (LGBTQ+) community. Continuing its tradition of celebrating activism through media, Tribeca Festival 2022 presented a slate of programming curated to inform, entertain and celebrate LGBTQ+ culture.The Closing Night event was preceded by the Special Screening of LGBTQ+ Shorts: SEE ME, FEEL ME
LGBTQ+ Shorts: 88 Minutes l English Closed Captions
These seven short films span the queer experience with humor, heart and hope, showing characters navigating emotionally intense terrain in their search for connection and compassion.
PROGRAM:
COMING OUT WITH THE HELP OF A TIME MACHINE
Dir/Writ: Naman Gupta l USA l Eng l Eng Subs l Short l 15m l
New York Premiere l Comedy, Drama, LGBTQIA, Science Fiction
Father-Son in “Coming Out….”. (Photo: Naman Gupta) 
Naman Gupta, Director – “Coming Out….”. (Photo: Naman Gupta) When coming out to his traditional Indian parents, Sid uses his time machine to reset the day in an attempt to make sure everything goes perfectly.
‘Coming Out With The Help Of A Time Machine’ is a story of family dynamics and acceptance, with strong LGBTQ+ and heartfelt sci-fi themes. Sid plans to come out to his conservative, community-oriented parents at a local diner. If anything goes wrong, Sid could lose the support of the people who matter to him most. Luckily, he has the power of time travel on his side-and he will do anything in his power to emerge from this encounter unscathed.
DOGFRIEND (Hundefreund)
Premiered at the BFI (British Film Institute) Flare Film
Festival in March 2022.
Prod/Writ: Sailesh Naidu l Dir: Maissa Lihedheb l Germany | German w/English subs l Short | 18m l Comedy, Drama, LGBTQIA, Romance, Thriller
Maissa with Lamin Leroy. (Photo : Malcolm Louis Reiss) The co-producers of the film Maissa Lihedheb, Lamin Leroy Gibba, and Sailesh Naidu developed the idea together for the film ‘DogFriend,’ wanting to tell a complex and nuanced story, centering a perspective almost never seen on screen. While working with an almost entirely queer and trans BIPOC filmcrew. DogFriend (Hundefreund) explores themes of love, race, and mental health–while subtly (and at times loudly) suggesting that those are intrinsically connected. In the wake of the global Black Lives Matter movement, during which race and systemic oppression are discussed more than ever, conversations about nuanced lived experiences and interpersonal connections are often decentered.
MY DEAR BOY
Dir/Co-Prod/Writ/Edit/: Leaf Lieber l USA l Eng l Short l 5m l
Experimental, LGBTQIA, Romance
Within the first few seconds of meeting each other, two men experience the rise and collapse of their destined relationship through a surreal journey.
WORK
Dir/Writ: April Maxey l USA l Eng l Short l 13m l Women, Drama, LGBTQIA, Romance
Unable to move on from a breakup, Gabriela impulsively drops into an old job, where she unexpectedly runs into a friend from her past.
VALENTINE
Dir: Beck Kitsis & Chris McNabb l USA l Eng l Short | 10m l New York, Women, Drama, LGBTQIA, Romance
With gender and identity in flux, Corey and Mia struggle to redefine their relationship.
INNER WOUND REAL
International Premiere
Dir: Carrie Hawks l USA l Eng l Eng Subs l Short l 15m l Animation, Experimental, Women, Documentary, LGBTQIA, Black & African American Diaspora Stories ‘Inner Wound Real’ relays the story of three BIPOC folks who self-injure, then find new ways to cope.
F^¢K ‘€M R!GHT B@¢K
New York Premiere
DIR/Co-Writ/Co-Prod: Harris Doran l USA l Short l Eng l 12m l Comedy, LGBTQIA, Music
To avoid being fired after having accidentally taken drugs, a queer Black rapper must outwit his boss at his day job.
(Mabel Pais writes on Social Issues, Health & Wellness, The Arts and Entertainment, Cuisine and Spirituality)