Saif Ali Khan has opened up about his discomfort with the growing paparazzi culture, saying that the constant attention from photographers has taken away much of the mystery that once surrounded film stars. The actor also pointed out that while celebrities are now more accessible than ever, the increasing invasion of their private lives has become a cause for concern.During a conversation with Barkha Dutt, Saif described his complicated equation with the paparazzi and admitted that speaking against them is often misunderstood.“It’s a very weird relationship. Some people pay them to turn up, which is very cool, I think. With the media, you never really know who is a genuine media person. And if you say anything, you come across as spoiled. It’s a very tricky situation to say anything negative.”Sharing why he feels excessive media attention affects stardom, Saif explained that while paparazzi have made celebrities more relatable, they have also stripped away the glamour that once surrounded them. He added that the real purpose of paparazzi photography is often to capture people in moments they would rather keep private.“I think, it kind of takes away from the movie stars in a way. But at the same time, it brings them to your living room. In India, it’s not really paparazzi yet. Their ideal picture is of you doing something you don’t want to be seen, right? Like, sitting on the pot or something. That would be a good pap picture where you’ve seen a movie star devoid of their glamour,” Khan continued, adding, “That’s why the Americans and English don’t like the paparazzi, because it exposes them. I think it takes away from stardom in a huge way. And I think my life was fine without them.”On the professional front, Saif is gearing up for the release of Haiwaan, in which he stars alongside Akshay Kumar. Directed by Priyadarshan, the thriller is slated to hit theatres on September 11, 2026. The film also features Shriya Pilgaonkar and Saiyami Kher in pivotal roles.*Haiwaan* is the Hindi adaptation of Priyadarshan’s 2016 Malayalam blockbuster Oppam, which originally starred Mohanlal. Mohanlal will also make a special cameo appearance in the remake.Saif was last seen in Kartavya, directed by Pulkit. The film also featured Rasika Dugal, Sanjay Mishra, Zakir Hussain, Manish Chaudhari and Saurabh Dwivedi in key roles.
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‘ Some details of this article were extracted from the following source timesofindia.indiatimes.com ’
