SHAHBAAZ KHAN The SECOND c o m i n g He was an overnight sensation after Hyder Ali in Sanjay Khan's The Sword of Tipu Sultan, but, to his dismay, everyone wanted him to play a king or a prince. When he attempted to break free of the image in films, he ended up with disasters and from the pinnacle of success came crashing down. After a thankfully brief phase of anonymity, Shahbaaz Khan is back as the Indian Phantom in Betaal Pachisi. Excerpts from the interview: Shahbaaz Khan is busy shooting for Betaal Pachisi and is very difficult to trace. We keep getting his answering machine every time we call. "Since I shoot for Betaal Pachisi during the night, I spend my mornings in bed," he confesses when we finally came face-to-face. Betaal Pachisi is an unusual title for a serial. "Is it? Betaal Pachisi is a Sanskrit word and means stories of Betaal, like Betaal Kathayen. Will this serial create ny controversies like Sunil Agnihotri's earlier serial Chandrakanta did? Shahbaaz rules out any such possibility saying that it is a clean, entertaining serial for kids. "It is not against our dharm and there is no vulgarity. When Sunil and I thought about making something different, we decided it had to be something that would instantly appeal to the viewers. And for that it had to be different from the serials on air these days. And I guess we have achieved our aim. The results of the three episodes telecast so far have been positive. We have been given the Sunday slot on DD2 at 9 am for 52 weeks, but as the serial is fast gaining popularity, we may get an extension," he informs with a satisfied smile. But isn't Betaal Pachisi (BP) a take off on the popular comic strip Phantom, The Ghost Who Walks? Shahbaaz confesses that, "BP has been inspired by the heroism of Phantom. But the overall approach of Betaal Pachisi is very different from that of Phantom. Phantom used his gun only to disarm the enemy. Betaal is very Indian, he performs pooja in the temple," he points out. But what about the similarity in the costumes? "Our character wears a red costume without a hood. When we experimented with computer graphics, we found that red was a suitable colour. And since the serial is a fantasy, brighter colours look good on screen. We chose red since we shoot mostly at night and we wanted something that would stand out," Shahbaaz explains. The serial has a touch of romance too. Betaal and Nina Jogan, played by Krutika Desai, were in love a 100 years ago. After his death, Betaal is reborn. Nina who is a witch, has grown old by now. But she transforms herself into a beautiful young lady with the aid of witchcraft and returns to win back her love. Sonu Walia, a stunning scribe forms the third angle of the triangle. Sunil Agnihotri is Shahbaaz Khan's favourite director and Betaal Pachisi is their third serial together after Chandrakanta and Yug. Shahbaaz is full of praise for the young director. "Sunil is a fantastic guy to work with. He is a very good technician, very enterprising, and he comes up with a lot of ideas. He maintains a very light atmosphere on the sets. Working with him is like a picnic," he smiles. Sunil's serial Chandrakanta is now on Star Plus. Shahbaaz insists that Chandrakanta has now lost its charm unlike Mahabharat. While it was a big hit when it was first telecast, it has now become a money-making business. "I guess there are plans to start shooting for Chandrakanta once again, but I haven't been notified about it yet," Shahbaaz states. One of Shahbaaz's forthcoming serials is Aakhri Mausam made by Farooque Nadiadwala in which he plays an 80 year-old man who keeps reminiscing about his heydays. Ten episodes of Sangeeta Bijlani's much-hyped serial Chandni are also ready and awaiting the right slot. "Though there are reports that she is pregnant, I am sure the serial won't be shelved since ten episodes means a lot of investment and those episodes should cover a fair amount of time as well. We will probably have to wait for her to get well before we continue shooting again," says Shahbaaz. Another interesting serial is Great Moghul, made by the Lokhandwalas, in which he plays Timurlen. "It is a non-controversial subject and I am doing it because I find the story intriguing. Great Moghuls deals with the personal lives of the kings not many have heard of. It will be telecast in August," Shahbaaz explains. But the serial which Shahbaaz can't stop raving about is Kalpana Lajmi's English serial The Awakening which is due for telecast soon. According to him, it is one of the best serials ever made. Set in Assam, it portrays the North East's hand in the freedom movement, a subject which has never been explored before. This serial has been commissioned by the government to commemorate 50 years of Indian Independence. But it is not based entirely on the independence struggle. The story describes the awakening of a rich playboy, a pro-British, who is transformed to become an active participant in India's freedom struggle after he is rejected by his lady love. Shahbaaz is also working with Kalpana Lajmi in her film Darmiyaan. His other films are Umesh Mehra's Quilla, Tinnu Anand's Ek Hindustani, Manoj Kumar's Jai Hind and Ashok Gaikwad's untitled film. Shahbaaz's earlier tryst with films was a failure. Soon after the success of Tipu Sultan, the hunk was flooded with film offers and Shahbaaz, in his haste to cash in on the opportunities, signed every film which came his way. Predictably, the results were disastrous. His first film Nachnewale Gaanewale bombed. This was followed by some more bad choices. "That time I couldn't afford to be choosy and made mistakes. Life is a gamble and that was the gamble I played and lost. I reached the pinnacle of success with Tipu Sultan, and then when I did these films, I suddenly came crashing down. But I gradually pulled myself together and started all over again. In the process I became very sensitive which I guess is the case with all artistic people. They tend to cry more often than normal people. I saw this happen to my father, Ustad Amir Khan. A great classical singer, he would start crying during his morning riyaaz," Shahbaaz reminises. Being the son of a great singer, life must have been pretty easy for Shahbaaz? "Oh no, It wasn't. My father struggled for 25 years before he was recognised as a singer. Eventually people began to understand his music and his love for the same. Seeing him suffer, my mother didn't want me to take up the same profession and since acting was my second love, I took it up seriously," Shahbaaz states. Though the character of Hyder Ali is his favourite to date, Shahbaaz gives a lot of credit as well as discredit to his role in The Sword of Tipu Sultan. "Though I became very popular after playing Hyder Ali, the after effects were very bad. Everyone wanted me to act and look like a king or a prince. But I didn't want to be stuck playing just one character," he sighs. "Thankfully now I have managed to break that image and I have started getting a variety of roles." Does he identify with the character of Yug? "To some extent, yes. It is an interesting character, but very different from the real me. Beeru is a tough guy whereas I am very soft. I have received letters from fans saying that watching me in Yug has made them more patriotic which I guess is a big compliment," Shahbaaz laughs. History and fantasy seem to be this actor's forte. His good looks add to his charm making him a perfect choice for these roles. "We have an interesting history and rich culture and as an actor I find it very satisfying to play historical characters, though it's not very easy," he reveals. Finally, when asked about his lady love Kartika Rane, Shahbaaz Khan denied having been engaged to her and spouted the usual line, "She's just a a good friend. Though I would like to marry and settle down some day, Kartika Rane doesn't fit anywhere in my plans." Hey, but isn't that pretty Kartika's photograph at his bedside table?