Humayun Saeed is the biggest star and producer in the entertainment industry of Pakistan. He has done uncountable projects in Pakistan, with his film London Nahi Jaunga fetching a huge hit in Pakistan and overseas. But he has generally stayed in Pakistan throughout his long career. Humayun Saeed is now spreading his art and skills by making his Hollywood debut with The Crown.
Humayun Saeed is playing the role of the late Lady Diana’s alleged ex Dr. Hasnat Khan in the Netflix series, and his opening look is out now. However, Humayun has played very hero-like characters throughout his career. This is the first time he plays an actual live person on screen.
Humayun Saeed spoke to Maliha Rehman for Dawn Icon, where he discussed getting to perform a character in such a big series. Humayun opened up that he was aware of Hamid Hussain, who also manages Nargis Fakhri, as he had once communicated to him for casting Nargis in his film. Then Hamid called him and enquired if he would be open to sending a trial for a role. Humayun said that he sent the audition. Later he contracted an NDA when he knew it was for The Crown.
Everything started with a call from Hamid Hussain, now my talent manager. He was a talent manager for Bollywood female star Nargis Fakhri, and I was in contact with him before I cast Nargis in my film. We have kept in communication since then. One evening I received a call from him, and he let me know that there was a significant international project that he had attended for me, but I would have to send an audition for it. I only recall auditioning for the first few projects at the flinch of my acting career, but I know this is a rule in the West and settled with it.
Next, I signed an NDA and was pleasantly surprised to know that the part was for The Crown. I had watched The Crown and was aware of its popularity. It was thrilling that I got a chance to be part of the series. I mailed my audition, and after sending it, I was required to do an online narration with the director and then with Elizabeth Debicki, who plays Princess Diana in the new season. Things had moved fast till this stage. However, after reading with Elizabeth, I didn’t hear back from Hamid. I resigned myself to thinking that the role had gone to someone else. But then, on the tenth day, I got a call from Hamid, and all he said was, ‘Congratulations!’ Soon, I was in London, isolated for a week before my first day on set.
Humayun also stated that he did a week-long training to understand Dr. Hasnat’s charisma as he is a very private person, and I didn’t know much about him.
“Before filming began, I got to do a workshop with a real surgeon in the UK to understand how a surgeon would behave and react on the job. Of course, I knew about Dr. Hasnat Khan even before I got this role. After my casting was confirmed, the team shared research material with me on the doctor. It included a few interviews as well as some images. Dr. Hasnat Khan is very private, which was why he and Princess Diana broke up — he couldn’t handle being in the limelight. Due to this, very limited material on him is available in the public domain. So I had to study whatever was shared with me in detail.”
“I am always nervous before I begin working on a project, and, in this case, with a completely new team, for a series that is watched worldwide, I naturally had apprehensions. I told Elizabeth I was nervous before we started filming, and she was very sweet. She told me that, until our rehearsal, even she had been worried, but now she was confident that we would do a great job. This helped.”
“Humayun also shared how emotional he was about getting into a very non-glamorous role as he generally plays a very hero-like character.
I would sometimes try to push up my hair right before a scene, but the stylists on set would immediately notice, and they would put my hair back in place. I was completely taken aback when I saw myself on screen for the first time! I didn’t look like Humayun Saeed but like the doctor. On a serious note, the makers of The Crown are extremely particular about details, and the look they created for the doctor had to be followed to the tee. It was impressive seeing firsthand how they looked into every tiny nuance.”
He further added:
The hair, make-up, and styling were done so that my face looked different. My hair and mustache were changed. My hair was thinned, and it was parted sideways so that it seemed that I was slightly balding. I also stopped watching my diet for a while. Usually, for roles, I have to watch what I eat not to gain weight, but, in this case, I just ate whatever I felt like.