Javed Akhtar calls the success of Animal ‘dangerous’: Onus is on the audience

The veteran lyricist spoke up on the kind of films and songs being made today at the Ajanta Ellora International Film Festival.

While talking at the Ajanta Ellora International Film Festival in Aurangabad, Javed Akhtar did not hold back. Addressing the attendees, he took to the stage to address the kind of films and songs being made today, apart from placing the onus on the audience for its success.

On Animal

Without naming Sandeep Reddy Vanga’s Ranbir Kapoor, Rashmika Mandanna, Anil Kapoor and Bobby Deol-starrer Animal, the lyricist rued about the kind of films that gain success today. “If there’s a film in which a man asks a woman to lick his shoe, if a man says it’s okay to slap a woman…and the film is a super hit, that’s dangerous,” he said, referring to the scene between Ranbir and Triptii Dimrii’s characters that generated controversy. The slapping could be in reference to Sandeep’s previous film Kabir Singh, starring Shahid Kapoor and Kiara Advani.

On music

He also opened up about how despite controversy about the lyrics penned by Anand Bakshi, the song Choli Ke Peeche from Khal Nayak was a massive hit in the ’90s. “People wonder why songs are so problematic today. Take Choli Ke Peeche for example, the issue isn’t the seven men and the two women involved in the song’s making. They’re hardly the problem,” he said, adding, “The problem is that the audience made this song a massive hit. Crores of people liked the song, that’s scary.”

On the audience

Placing the onus on the audience for the kind of films and music they make successful, he said, “More than the filmmaker, the onus lies with the audience today. You take responsibility too for the kind of films you watch. That’s what decides what kind of films will be made. You decide what’s made and what should be rejected. The value and moralities shown in our films lie in your hands,” he opined.