Ranbir Kapoor addresses Animal’s ‘toxic masculinity’ criticism. Watch

Sandeep Reddy Vanga’s Animal was one the most talked-about films of last year. It released on Netflix on January 26, and now the cast of the film- including Ranbir Kapoor, Bobby Deol and Anil Kapoor sat down for an interview with Anubhav Singh Bassi; where they talked in detail about the violent and dark world of the film. (Also read: Ranbir Kapoor calls over a security guard to pose with him, wins fans’ hearts. Watch)
Animal was not met with favourable reviews after release, where many slammed the film for being misogynist and glorifying toxic masculinity. Ranbir addressed the point and said, “There is a very healthy conversation that has started about toxic masculinity also, which is a great thing because cinema, at least, it starts a conversation. If something is wrong, if you don’t show that it is wrong, and unless conversation starts in the society, we will never realise it.”
Bobby Deol asked Ranbir whether he got tired after shooting so much action in Animal, to which he said: “No, because this was the first chance I got to do action like this. Both of you have done so many action films, this is technically my first film.” Bobby adds, “It is like you have got rid of all the frustration here,” “Yes, all of it!” Ranbir says.
Further expanding on the action in Animal, Ranbir Kapoor said that Sandeep Reddy Vanga has an unique sense of how to shoot action. He is unlike the other directors who would keep an action sequence in the middle. But Sandeep adds a story within that action sequence. “The interval sequence has a graph. The climax fight where he used B Praak’s song, I think that’s very novel. While audience is watching the film, they like the fact that this isn’t a typical action film. Every moment has an originality and a meaning,” added Ranbir.
Ranbir added an anecdote from the time he was shooting with Anil’s daughter Sonam Kapoor for Saawariya. “We used to go to Anil Sir’s house a lot… he had told me then that I have never played a father’s role but I will play your father in a film one day.” Anil then added that it almost happened before with Zoya Akhtar’s Dil Dhadakne Do, where Ranbir was initially cast as his son.
Anil further opened up about the personal connect with the father-son story in Animal. He said, “I knew Chintu (Rishi Kapoor), and his relationship with Ranbir which we discussed. So all these things were very rich and very wet for me, internally. For me to do this role and do it with Ranbir… it was a very full circle. Then my own relationship with Harsh, which is very dynamic and different. Where we are more like friends but there’s less communication.”
Bobby Deol’s menacing role in Animal became the talk of the town after the release of Animal. But ask the actor, and he says he does not consider him as an antagonist. “Everybody has a story. My grandfather died, I lost my voice. I love my wife and I am a romantic… I have three wives,” he said.
As the cast talked about the innovative and unique way of embedding music in the film, Bobby added Sandeep Reddy Vanga had made him hear the now viral song Jamal Kudu before shoot. Ranbir said that Sandeep found these songs on YouTube and then researched his way through the process. “He understands the value of Hindi film music,” added Ranbir.
Will there be a sequel to Animal? Has there been any development on Animal Park? The answer is yes. Ranbir added that Sandeep Reddy Vanga has two scenes ready about Animal Park which he has narrated. Since he is very secretive about his scripts, not much is known. But Ranbir suggests that the success of Animal should give him the confidence to go more “darker and deeper and complex.”
Animal can be streamed on Netflix.