Animal Actors Recall Vanga's Take On Portrayal Of Sikhs Onscreen: Sardars Are Not Made For Comedy

Animal hit the big screens on December 1, 2023 and has been drawing audiences to theatres since then. The film is headlined by Ranbir Kapoor and Rashmika Mandanna and is helmed by Sandeep Reddy Vanga. The movie scripted history by becoming the fastest Hindi film to breach the ₹500 crore mark at the domestic box office. Days after the mammoth success of the movie, supporting actors Amanjot Singh, Manjot Singh and Vikram Bakshi spoke about the director’s sensitivity towards the scenes showcasing Sikhs in the film. 

Animal actor Amanjot Singh says Sandeep Reddy Vanga was wary of showing Sikhs in comic roles

Amanjot Singh, Manjot Singh and Vikram Singh played the role of Ranbir Kapoor’s sikh cousins in the film who fly down from their village in Punjab to New Delhi to help protect their uncle Balbir Singh (Anil Kapoor). In an interview with Siddharth Kannna Amanjot shared that Sandeep believed that Sikhs are ‘not meant’ for comic roles. 

He recalled the director telling him, “I feel Sardars are not made for comedy. Their attitude, nature, their history, it is not made for comedy. I don’t look at Sardars for comedy.” He shared that the director’s knowledge and sensitivity come from the time he spent with Sikhs and his Punjabi friend during college. 

Animal actor Vikram Bakshi says Sandeep Reddy Vanga breaks stereotypes 

In the same conversation, actor Vikram Bakshi who played a significant role in the film spoke about how the director has always been breaking stereotypes. He asserted, “When did you last see a Sikh fictional character so serious? Even we had comedy, but it was situational. Aise bina baat ki comedy nahi hai (It is not nonsense comedy).” 

Manjot Singh also recalled an incident that took place during the shoot of Animal. He remmeberd Sandeep Reddy Vanga being sensitive about his vision for ‘sardars’. He recalled, “ At several places (in the film), he used to ask us, ‘Can we do this?’ Like, I am not cutting my beard. I remember the day we went for the look test. There was a makeup artist Rebecca, and there was a hairstylist. He told Sandeep sir, ‘Sir, inka ye jo yahan pe hair hai (pointing towards his cheek hair) isko thread karna hai‘ (Sir, we need to remove his facial hair) But Sandeep sir told them, ‘No, don’t ever touch his beard.” The actors opined that the director gave them freedom before each film to change whatever they did not like.