Glad I worked in ‘The Crown’: Humayun Saeed talks about new role, Princess Diana, and representation

Well-known Pakistani superstar, Humayun Saeed, recently spoke to Independent Urdu about his role as Dr Hasnat Khan in Netflix's hit series, The Crown. Saeed revealed that he was thrilled to have been offered the role, as he was a fan of the show and had watched the previous seasons. “The project was so big. I was very happy at the opportunity to work in it,” said the London Nahi Jaunga star. 

The Mere Paas Tum Ho star further went on, “I personally loved The Crown too, I watched the first four seasons. When it was offered to me, I couldn't believe that I would be myself in the fifth season, it was a big deal for me.” He also shared his thoughts on playing a real-life character for the first time, saying that although he had never played such a role before, the roles he typically plays are also somewhat based on real-life people or situations.

Saeed shed light on the preparation he underwent for the role, saying that he watched a few interviews but did not necessarily try to imitate the way Dr Khan looked or spoke. Instead, he focused on bringing out the character's shyness and other personality traits that would make him relatable to viewers. “He did not abuse his relationship with Princess Diana,” stated the star. “His friendship with Diana was very strong and heartfelt.”

The Bin Roye actor also discussed the challenges of playing a surgeon on screen and shared how he was trained by two surgeons to ensure authenticity in his performance. On the topic of Pakistani actors working on a global level, Saeed expressed his happiness that Pakistani actors are now being offered roles that are specific to Pakistan, as opposed to being played by actors from other South Asian countries. He cited the recent success of Mehwish Hayat and Fawad Khan, who have both made a name for themselves internationally.

Saeed also spoke about his upcoming projects, including a drama series called Main Manto Nahi Hoon (I'm not Manto), which he mistakenly referred to as ‘Manto Nahi Jaonga,’ confusing two of his projects. The project is written by Khalilur Rahman Qamar. He also discussed a historical serial about the life of Salahuddin Ayyubi, which is currently in production and is set to be the biggest co-production in Pakistan to date.