Saif Ali Khan-Kareena Kapoor's interference was why Agent Vinod failed, claims co-star: ‘It ruined the film’

IN 2012, Sriram Raghavan’s sight take federal agent Vinod was released amid heights expectations. Yet, the Saif Ali Khan and Kareena Kapoor-starrer failed to make a mark. More than a decade later, their co-star from the film, Lalit Parimoo, spoke about the film's criticism in an interview and blamed the lead stars.Agent Vinod co-star blames Saif Ali Khan, Kareena Kapoor for its failureOn Siddharth Kannan’s YouTube channel, Lalit was asked about why he believes Agent Vinod didn’t work out. He said, “I think a main reason for the film not working out was too much interference from the stars, Saif and Kareena. Sriram Raghavan could not make the film the way he wanted to. At every step, he was told to change this or that. It turned into a hotchpotch. The film’s runtime was also longer than necessary. The writing and direction team could not present what they dreamt of. That was the flaw.”He also suggested that changes were made to the film based on the stars’ screentime rather than what was required for the film. “I feel like a film is a director’s baby. So, if the director has a vision, one must go along with it. The director should also retain actors who suggest the right things. There’s no meaning to it if they’re suggesting based on their stardom. If they add value to the character, it should be included. Not because they think their footage is lessened or that some other actor is getting more. It ruins a film,” said Lalit.When asked if Sriram had spoken to him about this at that time, the actor said the filmmaker didn’t speak much about it, but he also claimed there was interference.When Sriram Raghavan called shooting it a ‘headache’Sriram, however, admitted in numerous interviews and interactions that he blamed himself for Agent Vinod’s failure. He also said that they didn’t have enough time for post-production before its release. While promoting Merry Christmas in 2024, he said, “After the film was released, I used to still try and cut it and do another version.”He also told Galatta Plus during the promotions of Ikkis that instead of being a ‘heady cocktail’ Agent Vinod turned out to be like a ‘headche’ and became ‘exhausting’. “One mistake I made is to take it for granted that the story is not vital; the sequences are vital. Otherwise, it has some terrific sequences. I still enjoy watching some of them,” he said. Agent Vinod saw Saif Ali Khan play the titular character, a RAW agent, while Kareena Kapoor Khan played an ISI agent, Iram Parveen Bilal / Dr Ruby Mendes.