With the cinema evolving frame by frame, filmmakers are now taking the risk of bringing the dark shades on the big screen unapologetically. One of the most recent and strong examples of the same is ‘Animal.’ Though the movie was released in December 2023, the conversation around it continues. The toxic masculinity of the male protagonist played by Ranbir Kapoor sparked a debate. While several lauded Ranbir for his acting chops, several others criticised him for bringing such a messed-up character to the big screen. Filmmaker Sandeep Reddy Vanga and the female protagonist Rashmika Mandanna also faced the heat. Speaking about the criticism that the movie faced, Rashmika in her recent media interaction said that a film must be perceived just as a film and not a means to judge an actor’s real-life personality based on the character that he or she is portraying.
Rashmika Mandanna’s take on Animal’s backlash
It has been said over the years that what you see on the big screen leaves a big impact on your personal life. The debates around cinema influencing and shaping society have been going on for decades. ‘Animal’ was also criticised for setting a bad example for society. Addressing the same, Rashmika, during her appearance at Mojo Story, said, “If you’re someone who is going to get influenced by a film, then watch your kind of films.” “Nobody is forcing anybody to go and watch every film. If that were the case, every film would be a blockbuster,” she added.When asked if the backlash bothered her, the actress mentioned that it didn’t bother her and explained, “There are gray characters in each one of us, we’re never black and white, we have gray in us. It’s just that Sandeep Reddy Vanga spoke about a messed-up character. That’s about it. Seems to me that people have celebrated it, as it made the numbers”She concluded the subject by saying, “People like it, people dislike it, it’s their own personal thing. We have just made a cinema and people should just go and watch a film for the film and not really judge the actor playing these characters. It’s acting for a reason, we are pretending on screen, our personality is different, the actors are different.”
