Saif Ali Khan attack: Actor responds to all conspiracy theories

Actor Saif Ali Khan has addressed and debunked all the conspiracy theories about the attack on him.

In his first interview since the stabbing incident on 16 January, the actor answered the Delhi Times, the internet's most-asked questions like the absent driver and his quick recovery.

Saif addressed people asking why he took an auto rickshaw to the Lilavati Hospital on the night of his attack and why his driver was not home.

"Nobody stays here all night. Everyone has a home to go to. We have some people staying in the house, but not the drivers. Unless you are going out at night or there's something needed, then you tell them to stay on. I would have driven if I could have found the keys. Luckily, I didn't. I probably should not have wiggled my back much. I'd have driven. I was completely lucid," he said, adding that the driver would have taken time to reach, which is why he opted for the auto.

The actor also addressed people's surprise at his quick recovery. Saif walked from the hospital after two surgeries and spent five days admitted there. He even attended an event two weeks later to promote his next film.

The actor said, "I think it is expected that there will be all kinds of reactions to something like this. There will be people ridiculing it. There will be people not believing it, people making fun of it. And I think that's fine because it is what gives colour to the world. If everyone had a sympathetic reaction to something, it would be flat and dull. And I expected it, then there is no need to react to it."

Saif also spoke about why it supposedly took him 1.5 hours to reach the hospital and he denied that there was such a lag, saying that he 'went downstairs and out' immediately after the attack. On the question of there being no weapons in the house, Saif said that all weapons in his Bandra home are decorative, and he does not like keeping guns in the house.

He further said he does not plan to keep any weapons for added security in his Mumbai residence. He reasoned, "Nothing will change. See, if you start doing that... because I don't feel I'm under threat. It was not a premeditated attack. I think it just was a burglary attempt gone wrong. That poor guy, his life is more screwed than mine."

He went on to add if he would have done anything differently in that situation if he were in that room again with the intruder: "I would put on the light and firstly tell him, 'Do you know who I am?' And I think he would say, 'Oh s**t! I'm in the wrong house.' And I'd say 'Right, put the knife down and let's talk about this.' I think I would have tried to reason. But it was a mixture of anger, outrage and a kind of defence. It was just too quick. And it was completely instinctive."

Saif spent five days at the Lilavati Hospital and underwent two surgeries on the day of the attack itself.

The doctors treating him said that he had received six wounds, including two deep ones. Saif was discharged from the hospital on 21 January. Earlier this month, he made his first public appearance since the attack when he appeared at a Netflix India event. With his neck bandaged and hand in a cast, Saif promoted his upcoming Netflix film - Jewel Thief.