In a conversation with Siddharth Kannan, the director shared his thoughts on Rashmika Mandanna not being nominated for the Filmfare. He praised Rashmika for her performance in the film and he remarked that he was surprised. He told Siddharth Kannan, “It is not an easy performance, what I believed. She was giggling, laughing. She is going mad. She is going crazy. That was not easy. It is an 11-minute scene. She was holding the scene.”

Additionally, Sandeep Reddy Vanga was also nominated for the Best Director Award. However, the award went to Vidhu Vinod Chopra for ‘12th Fail.’ Reflecting on this, Vanga said that he does not “believe in awards.” He said, “Genuinely, I don't believe in awards and all. But I went because 19 nominations hai and the entire team was there. So why should there be an absentee director there?”

Sandeep Reddy Vanga has also defended Rashmika for her performance in ‘Animal.’ When the trailer of the film was released, there was a scene where Rashmika spoke through her teeth. That scene sparked a meme fest on social media. However, he defended her performance and said that she was just in character and was emoting the part as he had visualized.

Starring Ranbir Kapoor, Rashmika Mandanna, Tripti Dimrii, Anil Kapoor, Bobby Deol, and Shakti Kapoor, ‘Animal’ released in theatres in December last year. The film is now available on Netflix.