Agent Vinod failed due to interference from Saif Ali Khan-Kareena Kapoor, claims co-star

3 min readNew DelhiJun 5, 2026 03:11 PM IST

Saif Ali Khan and Kareena Kapoor starred in Agent Vinod. (Photo: Kareena Kapoor/Instagram)

When Saif Ali Khan joined hands with Sriram Raghavan to make Agent Vinod, it was expected to become the biggest film of the year. Instead, it sank as soon as it released. Even the director himself described the film as a “headache” a few years later. In a new interview, one of the cast members of the film, actor Lalit Parimoo, said that the main cause behind the film’s failure was the interference from the lead actors, Saif Ali Khan and Kareena Kapoor. He shared that Sriram also spoke about the interference that ultimately led to a subpar movie.

Saif Ali Khan, Kareena Kapoor’s interference in the film

In a chat with Siddharth Kannan, Lalit Parimoo was asked the reason as to why Agent Vinod did not work and he said, “I think the main reason was that there was too much interference from the stars – Saif and Kareena. The way Sriram wanted to make that film, he couldn’t make it that way. He was constantly being told what he should do, so it became a mess. The writing and the direction team… They didn’t get to present what they wanted. That was the flaw of the film.”

Lalit has had a long association with Sriram as the two have worked together since the 1990s in television. He continued, “Film is a director’s medium, so if the director has vision, people should just follow that. And if the director has cast any actor, they should only take the actor’s suggestions if they are valid. If the actor is suggesting something because they are a star, then it means nothing. These kind of adjustments ruin the film.”

When asked if Sriram Raghavan ever opened up about his ordeal with him, Lalit said, “He didn’t share it but he was talking about the interference. He brought that up.”

Sriram Raghavan on Agent Vinod failure

In an earlier chat with Galatta Plus, Sriram Raghavan had opened up about Agent Vinod’s failure and said, “One mistake I made is to take it for granted that the story is not vital, the sequences are vital.” He admitted that “it wasn’t as good as it should have been.” The Ikkis director said that instead of being a “heady cocktail” it turned out to be a “headache,” and said that the film became “exhausting.” “Otherwise, it has some terrific sequences. I still enjoy watching some of them,” he said.

The 2012 film Agent Vinod starred Saif Ali Khan in the role of RAW agent and Kareena Kapoor playing an ISI agent. At the time of its release, the film was panned by critics but over the years, it has developed a niche fan base.