Rashmika Defends Animal Director Sandeep Reddy Vanga, Says 'He Doesn’t Look At Women As Creatures'

Rashmika Mandanna is currently basking in the success of her recently released movie Pushpa 2, starring Allu Arjun and Fahadh Faasil. The movie is among the highest-grossers in Indian cinema. In the movie, she played the role of Srivalli, Pushpa's wife and for this, she holds director Sukumar in high regard. In a recent interview, the actress feels honoured to have worked with filmmakers who see women in a powerful light. She defended Animal director Sandeep Reddy Vanga and said that even he treats his female characters with utmost respect.

Rashmika Mandanna opens up about working with Sandeep Reddy Vanga and Sukumar

In an interview with Siddharth Kannan, Rashmika said what she saw in Sandeep Reddy and Sukumar is that they don't look at women as "creatures who need help" rather they believe they are powerful. She backed her statement by saying, "You see Geetanjali or Srivalli, both of these characters know that Ranvijay or Pushpa are killing 200 people out there, but still, they have the guts to stand up against them when they make a mistake. Voicing that up takes courage, Vanga and Sukumar think that a woman standing up against a man who can kill 200 people is possible because of their respect towards women.”

Rashmika is honoured to be directed by Sandeep and Sukumar. She explained that if one goes to the depth of it he/she will see the "love and respect they have for women". And that's how she portrayed. "That just came across through my character, because I have also done characters where I needed help, I needed to be saved, I will do those characters also. But these characters show a woman through a director’s eyes, so it’s an honour to be directed by them," she added.

Rashmika has time and again defended her Animal director as upon the release, the movie received severe backlash for promoting misogyny.

Pushpa 2 The Rule inches closer to ₹1000 crore mark in India

The daily collections of Pushpa 2 have seen a sharp decline since the beginning of week 2. On the second Monday, the movie made ₹26.95 crores, and on the second Tuesday, it collected ₹24.25 crores, the lowest single-day collection since its release. Despite the declining business, the Allu Arjun-Rashmika Mandanna film has collected ₹953.3 crore at the domestic box office, per Sacnilk. The Hindi version of the movie is topping the chart as it has earned ₹597.99 crore so far.