[2] His paternal grandfather, Raja Syed Sajid Husain Ali, was the former ruling prince of the principality of Kotwara in Awadh of pre-independence India.
He made his directorial debut under Yash Raj Films and Madras Talkies, with Saathiya (2002), starring Vivek Oberoi and Rani Mukerji.
[6] Ali's third film, released on 15 June 2007 and titled Jhoom Barabar Jhoom, stars Abhishek Bachchan, Preity Zinta, Bobby Deol and Lara Dutta in lead roles.
The movie received average reviews from critics and got lukewarm response at the Box office.
His next movie was Soorma, a biographical sports drama film based on the life of hockey player Sandeep Singh, releasied on 13 July 2018.