Saif Ali Khan Such A Long Journey And

Some success stories are stories that go beyond just being stories

They are stories which become modern day fables almost difficult to believe

A story like the success story of Saif Ali Khan, better known as the son of the Nawab of Pataudi and Sharmila Tagore, the star of the sixties who stole a million hearts

This Khan made his debut as a star son with a star daughter, Kajol, daughter of Tanuja

The two made their debut in Rahul Rawail's Bekhudi, the same Rahul who launched star sons like Kumar Gaurav and Sunny Deol

The star son was soon in a mess, he was caught in traps and nets he had created for himself

He was the cause of several problems, threw tantrums on the sets and stories about his nawab like behaviour spread all over the industry

The stories created problems for Rahul who ultimately took a bold decision to drop him half way and replace him with another hero, Kamal Sadanah

The film was finally released and worked wonders only for Kajol who proved she was a born actress

Saif did not give up, he waited and his wait ended in his playing small time roles in small time films made by small time filmmakers with small time actresses

He graduated to play the parallel roles in a series of films with Akshay Kumar as the hero

Akshay was the khiladi but Saif also played to be a winner

He never stopped growing till he proved a match for Akshay in a Yash Raj film, "Yeh Dillagi"

He kept growing into a better actor, trying his best, working hard to be noticed and succeed

The first time he was good was when he was faced with Aamir Khan and Akshay Khanna in "Dil Chaahta Hai"

It seemed like he himself believed that it was now or never for him

He moved several steps ahead when he did "Hum Tum" with Rani Mukherji and went to the extent of winning the National Award for the Best Actor, something which was like a believe it or not story for all those who had given up all hope for him

His performance in "Hum Tum" with a talented actress like Rani Mukherji as competition gave him place among the other Khans, he was known as a sensitive actor who could pick up challenges and face them

But before he could be labeled or branded as a sensitive actor made only to play the lover boy, he came up with a shocker, he played the bad man in Vishal Bhardwaj's "Omkara", he was the symbol of all that could be evil in man and Saif proved how good he could be as a crude and cruel creature

It was one of his most challenging roles and he met the challenge that was lying hidden and waiting for its chance to explode, a chance which came thanks to Vishal Bharadwaj

It had taken him time to reach the stage he had, he had to face all kinds of ups and downs, he couldn't have given up, there were times when he was tempted to but that strong will power kept him going

Saif the actor has now reached a safe place, a place from where he cannot be shaken, moved or threatened

Saif is now busy fighting his way up all on his own and is succeeding as one only hope that the nawab in him doesn't ruin his own chances

Saif's personal life too has taken all kinds of twists and turns to find himself as a favourite of all the six hundred gossip magazines of the country

He married an established actress like Amrita Singh and made her a house wife, the mother of his children, Ibrahim and Sara which brought him into limelight

It all looked like all was well in paradise and there was no place for problems in a paradise created by himself

But that unfortunately was not to be as Saif and the nawab in him went looking for adventurous ways of living an alternate life

He got into a matter of the heart affair with Rosa and again it seemed like he was an expert in building his own paradises but that too proved to be a short dream

Now Saif says he has found the "ultimate woman" in Kareena Kapoor who was till the other day "the ultimate woman" in Shahid Kapur's life, Saif has Kareena's name tattooed on his right hand to prove how much he loves her but what can one say about the heart which 'writes' its own ways through the life of man, specially tricky stories it writes for men like Saif and Kareena

Saif has also grown ambitious and is planning to launch his own banner to make the kind of films he wants to make

I wonder if he will be able to manage this responsibility at a time when some of the biggest filmmakers have fled the scene in fear of the wild ways of the corporates

Saif will have to find all the safe ways to keep himself safe both as an actor and all that he plans to do with his heart and mind in the future

It is at this time that he needs the prayers, blessings and good wishes of men and women who have loved him or even left him at some time or the other.