Hyderabad: Veteran lyricist and celebrated screenwriter Javed Akhtar talked about Sandeep Reddy Vanga's comments on his criticism of the movie Animal. Javed clarified that he wasn't criticising Sandeep but was concerned about how the audience perceives such films. He explained that he believes in freedom of expression, even if it means portraying controversial characters, but he worries about the impact on millions of viewers.
In a recent interview, the 79-year-old lyricist was asked about his views on Animal and Sandeep's reaction to his criticism. Responding to the same, Akhtar clarified, "I was not criticising the filmmaker at all. I think in a democratic society, he has the right to make one Animal, and many Animals." He added, "I was concerned about the audience, not about the filmmaker." Regarding the portrayal of controversial characters, he said, "He has the right to make any film." Javed expressed his concern for the impact on viewers, stating, "My concern lies with the crores of people who celebrated the film."
Javed further remarked, "When he responded to me, I was honoured. In 53 years of my career, he could not find one film, one script, one scene, one dialogue, one song." He emphasized, "So he had to go to my son's office and find a TV serial, which is neither acted, directed or written by Farhan. His company has produced it." Reflecting on Sandeep's inability to find any fault in his long career, Javed added, "53 years ke career mein tum kuchh bhi nahi nikaal paye (You couldn't find anything sexist in 53 years of my career)? What a shame."
Regarding the controversy over the shoe-licking scene in Animal, Javed had earlier stated, "I believe it’s a testing time for the young filmmakers today as to what kind of characters they want to create that the society will applaud." To which Sandeep responded, questioning Javed's silence on the show Mirzapur, saying, "Why didn’t he tell the same thing to Farhan Akhtar when he was producing Mirzapur." He added, "Duniya bhar ke gaali Mirzapur ek show mai hai (the series is full of abuses) and I haven’t watched the whole show."
Released in December 2023, Animal turned out to be blockbuster with lifetime collection of Rs. 542.93 crores. The film headlined by Ranbir Kapoor, however, garnered polarising reactions not only from the audience but within the industry as well.
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