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The promise of Babil Khan

Perfect? Pretentious? or a paradox? We finally put an end to the curiosity behind who Babil Khan really is. Is he the perfect mix of a star and an actor or is there more than meets the eye? As it turns out, there are several layers to him and we enjoyed uncovering each of them!

Story By: Sadhika Sehgal
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When I walked onto the set, Babil Khan stood in front of the camera posing like he was meant to face them. He approached the flashing lights, the direction with a sense of familiarity, the kind that made me instantly wonder if acting too is something that can be passed down through generations.

As soon as the director took a cut, there went Babil Khan in his vanity and with him the smile he had plastered on his face. 

Through the course of the day, I saw Babil and his many moods make casual appearances and disappearances on his face rendering him completely unpredictable. A thought that eventually set the tonality of my line of questioning with him. After all, there had to be an end to the curiosity around Babil Khan and whether or not he is the gold that glitters or the subtext that we’d been missing all along.

Jacket: @cmykay, Shirt: @bhaane, Pant: @rabane, Sunglasses: @roavinbugs

Turns out, he was both and neither at the same time. A complete paradox, contradiction of emotions and a work-in-progress. Babil Khan was as sweet as advertised, as passionate, free spirited and enthusiastic as perceived and as layered as I’d imagined.

What is fame to you?

See, to me it was directly linked to the fact that when I was a child, fame was the reason why I would become distant with my father. The crowds would pull him away and as a child even if it’s for 10 minutes when he is holding your hand - it is your entire world. So, when a body guard comes and takes him away because the crowd is rushing to him, for a child that is very traumatic.

Jacket: @cmykay, Shirt: @bhaane, Pant: @rabane, Sunglasses: @roavinbugs

And there is also that Freudian thing maybe. 

..that a boy, perhaps, is always subconsciously competing with his father?

Maybe, maybe it’s that. I don’t understand why we want it. Wanting attention is one thing, but wanting fame is different. And maybe you can use it in a way that can create a positive impact. If you’re famous and you’re doing the right kind of thing then that is bound to create a change.

How would you describe yourself?

You’ve seen a bucket of water? You can’t give shape to the water in the bucket. That is me, the bucket is my body. Bruce Lee once said, “Be like water” and for actors, I have just realized that is great advice.

Sweater: @kanikagoyallabel, Denim: @houseofdk, Jewellery: @isharya

Do you think you’re a people pleaser?

Yes, big time. It’s because I am insecure. It’s a survival mechanism to make sure everyone around you is happy because it’s a way to fit into society. I was never really put into conventional systems even while growing up. I was not put into normal schools, I was kept away from the city so eventually it became very tough for me to fit in. 

I would never be able to talk about the things that they wanted to hear, perhaps that is why I had no friends and it was the loneliness that made me feel like I needed to conform to what they wanted me to be. To be the expectation.

What are your fears in life?

I fear failure. And you know, it is said that to truly accept art in your life, you must fail. But that journey through failure is what scares me and is very difficult to take. I think we get so attached to our identity that we don’t want to let that identity down. So that failure really scares you, but it is also one of the regressive things you can do to your evolution. 

There is no human being who has managed to excel in life without experiencing failure. So you have to fail!

Shirt and jacket both: @shivanandnarresh, Denim: @_huemn

What are your insecurities?

I grew up always feeling alone. I always grew up needing validation, needing affection, needing love. So, I guess all my insecurities stem from there. I always feel like people will abandon me and it comes from the fact that I would spend 15 beautiful days with Baba and then suddenly he would vanish for 4 months for shooting. I was a  kid, I wouldn’t get it then but that insecurity of abandonment exists.

Shirt and jacket both: @shivanandnarresh, Denim: @_huemn

What was the highlight of 2023 for you?

It was when one of these nights I had gone on my usual auto-rickshaw ride with Afzal bhai and I was on the highway and I saw such big banner posters of Railway Men! Woh mazza! I used to stop on the highway and watch myself. One can’t describe the feeling and that too I was standing with legends! 

Credits
Head Of Editorial Content: Dattaraj Thaly
Story By: Sadhika Sehgal
Creative Director: Vishakha Kaushik
Photography: Vivek Desai
Styling: Pranay Jaitly & Shaunak
Producer: Surajit Mondal
Make Up: Stephen
Hair: Swapnil
Editor: Rahul Rawat, Lovish Sethi, Sushil Kumar
Graphics: Dhruv