Sandeep Reddy Vanga did ‘badtameezi’ after Animal release and Anurag Kashyap defended him: Varun Grover

Filmmaker Varun Grover has shared why he had a mixed reaction to Anurag Kashyap's Instagram post for Sandeep Reddy Vanga after the release of Animal in 2023.

When Anurag Kashyap penned a note for Sandeep Reddy Vanga on his Instagram account in January 2024 and called him the ‘most honest , vulnerable and a lovely person’, filmmaker Varun Grover had a sharp response in the comment section- ‘No.’ In an interview with The Lallantop, Varun has finally opened up about why he felt the need to say so, detailing that Vanga had behaved obnoxiously on social media and even told Javed Akhtar that he cannot write. Despite these instances, Anurag had defended him. (Also read: Interview | Varun Grover: ‘Censorship in itself is a wrong idea for a country like ours’)

Varun Grover has said Anurag Kashyap defended Sandeep Reddy Vanga and had nothing to say on his film Animal.

What Varun said

During the interaction, Varun said, “If someone comes in defense of a film that I understand. Defending a work of art is one thing and defending a person is another… I believe I can never stand either for or against a person, but can do that for an idea. In my humble opinion, in that post Kashyap saab was not defending the film but the filmmaker and his behaviour.”

On defending Sandeep Reddy Vanga

Varun then went on to add, “There was nothing about the film [Animal] in that post. The same filmmaker in question had picked up several fights on his social media… kai badtameeziyan ki hai. Jaha tak ki mujhe yaad hain, usne ye bhi kaha tha ki Javed [Akhtar] saab ko likhna nahi ata hain. Aapko writing ke baare mein kuch andaaza nahi hain. Tameez se nahi kaha tha, kaafi badtameezi se kaha tha (He had behaved badly. As far as I can remember, he even said that Javed Akhtar does not know how to write, and has no idea about it. He said that in a bad tone). So my ‘No’ comment was in response to the fact that Kashyap was trying to shield the person.”

Varun went on to add that after he made his comment, Anurag Kashyap called him to talk about it, and he explained it to him as well. Anurag accepted that what Varun was saying made sense.

Sandeep Reddy Vanga's Animal was one of the biggest hits of 2023. Starring Ranbir Kapoor, Anil Kapoor, Rashmika Mandanna, Bobby Deol, and Triptii Dimri, the film divided reactions from viewers and critics for ‘promoting violence and misogyny.’ A sequel to the film is already in the works.