'He is director's actor': Ali Abbas Zafar on his streaming debut with Saif Ali Khan

Director Ali Abbas Zafar, who is making his streaming debut with a Saif Ali Khan-starrer political thriller, believes it is a great time for creative people in India to jump on the OTT bandwagon as the local content is getting wider acceptance. From writing to talent, streaming platforms are giving creative people a refreshing outlet, said the director, known for helming blockbuster Salman Khan movies such as Sultan and Tiger Zinda Hai.

It will be Saif's second show on a streaming platform after Netflix's "Sacred Games". Calling the Bollywood star a "director's actor", Ali said he had a fabulous time working with him. "He is a delight to work with. He is a chilled out guy. We both know each other from before. He is a director's actor. I had a fabulous time working with him.  He is looking very good in the show. I am very happy with his performance," Ali said.

The show is currently in post-production stage, a lot of which is taking place virtually due to the coronavirus-led lockdown. "Luckily nothing got affected in terms of shoot. We had finished shoot and were in post production, the edit work was underway. As a lot of the work can be done online, it is keeping me busy. We were also getting into pre-production for our newer stuff. But that will go on floors once everything is normal," he said.

Ali said the team has already begun writing the second season of the show. "I am in the middle of putting the final thread and hopefully we will have a lot of material in our hand in terms of script when the lockdown is over," he added.

Ali said his Amazon Prime Video show, tentatively titled Tandav, is best suited for the long format storytelling. "There are certain films that can't be told in two-and-half hour format and are best seen like a nine or ten hour film. I opted to make this show for OTT as it had the capacity to take nine hours or maybe two to four seasons. It required the long format," he said.

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What's next for Saif Ali Khan?

Saif Ali Khan's latest release had been Nitin Kakkar's Jawaani Jaaneman along with debutante Alaya F and Tabu. He will feature next in Yash Raj Films' upcoming film Bunty Aur Babli 2 along with Rani Mukerji, Siddhant Chaturvedi, and Sharvari Wagh. The film was scheduled to release in theatres on June 26, 2020, but is now postponed until the coronavirus pandemic subsides in the country. 

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(with PTI inputs)