Media365
3 min readKochiOct 13, 2026 05:05 PM IST
One of the most controversial Indian movies of this decade, director Sandeep Reddy Vanga’s Ranbir Kapoor-led Animal (2023) faced massive backlash for its glorification of toxic masculinity and misogyny. Yet, it earned significant praise from a segment of the audience who dubbed it a cinematic achievement, particularly for its writing and technical aspects.
Ranbir Kapoor’s unshakable trust in Sandeep Reddy Vanga
Despite its bold themes and portrayals, Sandeep Reddy Vanga recently admitted that Ranbir Kapoor had no reservations about the movie or its scenes at any point and that he trusted him completely from start to finish. During a conversation with veteran filmmaker Ram Gopal Varma and Telugu star Nagarjuna on EveryDay Cinema YouTube channel, Vanga stated, “Ranbir Kapoor never had any doubts because everything felt new and he had no references.”
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When RGV pointed out that this may also be because Vanga had already proven himself as a strong filmmaker with Arjun Reddy (2017) and its Hindi remake Kabir Singh (2019), Nagarjuna chimed in, recalling that Ranbir was excited about Animal even while working on Brahmastra: Part One – Shiva (2022).
Nagarjuna recalls Ranbir Kapoor’s obsession with Animal
“He was talking only about Animal, which had yet to commence shooting at that time. He kept showing me scenes from Arjun Reddy, not even Kabir Singh. At one point, he showed me the scene where Arjun Reddy (Vijay Deverakonda) kisses a girl and exclaimed, ‘Look how real it is!’ He was very excited to start Animal even while working on a massive project like Brahmastra,” Nagarjuna shared.
Recalling the scene in Arjun Reddy where the titular character stuffs ice cubes in his pants, Ram Gopal Varma pointed out, “Nobody had ever seen something like that before.” He further asked Sandeep Reddy Vanga, “However, were you concerned that this would turn off a section of the audience, particularly family audiences?
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‘Don’t think about the audience’
The Animal director replied, “Since the film was made for young audiences, I was never worried about such things.” As Nagarjuna pointed out that his target audience itself was youngsters, Varma added, “Something original or real like the aforementioned scene can happen only if you don’t think about the audience.”
Sandeep Reddy Vanga is currently working on his directorial venture Spirit, starring Prabhas and Triptii Dimri in the lead roles. The movie will hit screens worldwide on March 5, 2027.
