Jun 05, 2025 06:01 AM IST

It is hard to imagine Ranbir Kapoor’s Ranvijay Singh in Sandeep Reddy Vanga’s Animal today without his trademark long hair and beard. But hairstylist Aalim Hakim revealed in an interview with Galatta India that Sandeep was initially not convinced with the look as it looked too similar to Sanju. (Also Read: Did Sandeep Reddy Vanga slam Deepika Padukone for ‘ousting’ his Spirit script, putting down ‘younger’ Triptii Dimri?)

In the interview, Aalim revealed that Sandeep took some convincing to let Ranbir have long hair and a beard in Animal. “Had Ranbir’s hair and beard not been long in Animal, I don’t think his character would have the same impact. It took time to develop his character’s look,” he said, adding, “Vanga sir initially said the long hair isn’t working, he’s looking like Sanju. How he looked in the Sanjay Dutt biopic. I had to convince him that he won’t look like that once his whole look is put together.” 

Animal tells the story of Ranvijay Singh, who goes on a rampage after his father, Balbir Singh (Anil Kapoor), is threatened. After going through a bunch of enemies before facing off against Abrar Haque (Bobby Deol), his long-lost cousin. Rashmika Mandanna plays Ranvijay’s wife Geethanjali in the film, while Triptii Dimri plays his lover, Zoya. The film ends with a cliffhanger, setting up a new villain and a new story for the sequel, Animal Park. Animal was criticised, much like Sandeep’s previous films for misogynistic tones. However, the film was a massive success, collecting ₹915 crore worldwide.

After the 2023 films Tu Jhoothi Main Makkaar and Animal, Ranbir is currently shooting for Love & War with Sanjay Leela Bhansali and Ramayana with Nitesh Tiwari. Sandeep will direct Prabhas in the cop drama Spirit, which will go on floors this year. Deepika Padukone was initially supposed to star in the project but was replaced with Triptii after she turned it down due to remuneration and work-hour issues.