Mumbai: The late Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi had leased out the Rs 1200-crore Pataudi Palace to a hotel chain some years ago. Now, his son, actor Saif Ali Khan, has become the custodian of the property.
Saif’s sister Soha Ali Khan, who had once shared that there is no gender discrimination in their family, is also a shareholder in the property.
So, how much will Soha get?
Well, the actress owns only a 2 BHK apartment, which was used as a generator room, in the Rs 1200-crore property.
“I have what was the generator room. But luckily, for a short period of time, there was a hotel that was managing the Pataudi palace. My parents moved into the generator room, converted it into what, I think, is actually a very nice property, and now that’s mine,” Soha told Zoom.
Asked why her brother Saif was given more share in the property, she said, “The things that were relevant to my life were not crowns or thrones. It was just the things that I wanted to do, and never was I told that you want to do this.”
“Never was there an expectation that the son would drink milk first and daughters would serve them food before eating themselves. I was never told not to play outside because you will become dark or that girls should behave like this, wear clothes like this. None of that,” Soha shared.
“Even though my father was from an aristocratic Muslim background, he was a forward thinker and very progressive. I think all of that helped me to just have that confidence, to believe that anything I wanted to do, was possible. That I should just work hard at it. There were no systemic barriers. There was nothing preventing me from thinking,” Soha continued.
“I was aware of the law of primogeniture; I am aware of Muslim law. I am aware now that there’s a lot of things whereby you can circumvent that as well. You can leave a will and say that this is what I want to go to my children in equal,” Soha opined.
Saif is reportedly transforming a section of the property into an archive to showcase the achievements of his ancestors.
Saif is the sole owner of the palace as he was born a ‘nawab’ before the privy purses were abolished.
