Filmmaker Sandeep Reddy Vanga, who is known for his blockbusters like Animal and Kabir Singh, has often found himself at the center of polarized opinions. In a recent interview, he addressed the criticism surrounding Animal, particularly the film industry’s reaction to the Ranbir Kapoor-starrer.
While speaking in a promo for his upcoming interview on Game Changers, Vanga pointed out the apparent contradiction in how the film was received. “People who criticized very badly, film-related people, everybody said Ranbir was brilliant. I am not jealous of Ranbir, but the point is ‘Ranbir was brilliant, but the writer-director was…’ I don’t understand the disparity,” he remarked.
He further elaborated that industry insiders seemed eager to work with Ranbir, making it easier to target him as the director. “I understood they want to work with Ranbir. That’s clear because if they say anything to Ranbir… It’s easy to make a comment about me because I am new to this place. A filmmaker will make a film in 2-3 years, but an actor will appear five times. So the one with whom you can work more, you won’t say anything about him. That’s true,” Vanga explained.
Despite facing criticism for its violent and misogynistic themes, Animal emerged as a massive box office success, collecting over Rs 500 crore domestically and becoming the biggest hit of both Ranbir Kapoor and Sandeep Reddy Vanga’s careers. A similar backlash followed Vanga’s 2019 film Kabir Singh, starring Shahid Kapoor.
The director is now gearing up for his next project, Spirit, starring Prabhas. He has also announced a sequel to Animal titled Animal Park.
