Anjali Anand He is no stranger to online trolling, but ahead of the release of ‘Dhamaal 4’, he is addressing it head on. In a recent interview, the actor got candid about the body shaming he’s faced, the state of female-centric roles in Bollywood and why he refuses to let the noise get to him.
Anjali Anand elaborates on how ‘society still sees my weight before my work’
In an interview with India Today, the ‘Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani’ actress explained how conversations around actresses continue to focus on their weight instead of their craft.“Yes, and I think this is still happening because society still reflects it. Society still believes and still sees my weight before my work. So jab tak woh hota rahega, tab tak main yeh kaam karti rahungi (as long as this continues to happen, I will continue to do this work) to prove that it is wrong,” said Anjali.Anjali believes the industry needs to do a lot more to create meaningful roles for women who don’t fit the conventional heroine mold.“There’s still a long way to go when it comes to writing better roles for women. That’s what I’m trying to do. The more people see me, the more their thinking will open up. They’ll start to believe that they can write something better for this actor, for this role, something that uses her skills more than just her body,” said the ‘Bell Bottom’ actress.On signing ‘Dhamaal 4’, he admitted that it came with its own emotional weight given the film’s subject matter: “It’s a huge mess because it’s a huge responsibility if you’re taking on something so vulnerable, something you’re up against all the time. Something you know is not right. Something that shouldn’t be done in society.”He added: “But then I thought that this is still being done in society, and we’re just showing society what its reality is. And if they’re offended by it, that means they’re doing it too.”The actor noted that the judgment based on appearance in society goes far beyond weight.“It’s not just about fat shaming. People shame others for being too thin, for their skin color, for not having hair, for how they look, what they wear, what brand they wear, everything. The day it stops, which honestly may never happen, what we can do is present these issues in a different way and show people what’s possible.”Reflecting on the representation of women in traditional Hindi cinema, Anjali noticed a gradual but real change.“Things are slowly changing. Earlier, characters like Miss Mimi were only shown eating burgers, or Sweetu was reduced to having a double chocolate frappuccino and muffins. There was no position for these characters. But with Sweetu, things started to change. Then came Gayathri in Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani, who stood up for herself.”She added: “Women today have agency. There’s a community behind them. They’ve been given space, and they own that space. It’s a slow process because there are so many people in this country and the world, but change will come to everyone over time.”
Anjali Anand opens up on ‘Dhamaal 4’ trailer response
Reacting to the response to the ‘Dhamaal 4’ trailer, Anjali admitted that she feels overwhelmed, albeit in a good way.“I’m overwhelmed by everything. I just hope that everyone likes the film and things work out. I just hope to get many more beautiful parts from this. And yeh jo bhi noise ho rahi hai mere baare mein (whatever noise is made on me), it just becomes nice and it turns out great for me,” he said.
Anjali Anand opens up on trolling
Talking about the online trolling that followed the film’s promotions, Anjali revealed that the team had prepared in advance.“We knew trolling was going to happen. We were prepared for it, so we didn’t put too much emphasis on it. The more attention you give trolls, the more they grow. If you don’t recognize it, that’s life. Some people get trolled, some can handle it, some can’t. We’re just showing the reality of someone going through this.”When asked if co-star Ajay Devgn or the director had come personally to back her reaction, Anjali laughed it off with characteristic confidence.“Because I don’t look like someone who needs to be talked into dealing with it, you know. They know this girl can take a hundred on her chin and still be standing.”
More about “Dhamaal 4”
‘Dhamaal 4’ releases on July 10 and stars Ajay Devgn, Arshad Warsi, Javed Jaffrey, Anjali Anand and Sanjay Mishra.