SARA AND IBRAHIM ALI KHAN A Class Apart

When I first met Sara Ali Khan she was all of five. I was interviewing her father, actor Saif Ali Khan, in his grandmother, Begum Sajida Sultan’s sprawling Lutyen’s bungalow in Delhi. Saif disappeared into one of the rooms once we were done and in came Sara prancing around and striking a conversation with easy familiarity. She urged me to play with her and once I engaged with her a bit, she didn’t want me to leave. While I was having my little tête-à-tête, wondering how to get out of the situation, not wanting to disappoint the child who instantly had my heart, her aunt, Saba, came and explained to her niece that I would be back soon if she let me go. She agreed, albeit a little reluctantly. When I narrate the story to Sara, she says in her exuberant voice, “I can so believe that. It doesn’t take me too long to get attached to people.” The little, adorable podgy kid has now grown up to be a svelte young woman, brimming with talent, positivity and dare I say, stardom, a word she’s quick to renounce. “To be honest with you, I don’t believe in the word ‘star’. And I don’t just say that for humility. With the advent of social media and with the easy access that we have to all celebrities and actors today, I don’t think there is anything mystical or starry really left. I don’t necessarily aspire for stardom,” she says assertively.

This is her second shoot with HELLO! where she made her print debut with her mother and actor Amrita Singh seven years ago. There is a sense of déjà vu as designers Abu Jani-Sandeep Khosla are back on set, dressing up and styling the siblings with trunks full of their design paraphernalia strewn all over. Back then, it was Amrita telling Sara what to do and how to pose in front of the camera. This time, Sara takes charge. She looks out for Ibrahim, more like a protective mother around her cub and admiring him with a similar maternal impulse when he comes out looking dapper. The close bond between the brother