Anurag Kashyap on Friday openly sided with Animal director Sandeep Reddy Vanga, calling him the “most misunderstood filmmaker at the moment” and discarding allegations of mindless violence and misogyny that have been circling over the Ranbir Kapoor-starrer since its release in December last year.

Taking to Instagram, Kashyap posted photos with Vanga from their recent meeting, capturing a moment of camaraderie between the two filmmakers.

“Had a great evening with @sandeepreddy.vanga. The most misunderstood, judged, and reviled filmmaker at the moment. To me, he is the most honest, vulnerable, and a lovely human being. And I really don’t give a f*** what anyone thinks of him or his film,” he wrote.

In his note, Kashyap revealed that he had long been interested in meeting Vanga and asking him about his cinematic vision for Animal. "I wanted to meet the man, and I had questions, and he answered everything I asked of him about his film that I actually saw twice,” he wrote.

Acknowledging Vanga's patience and authenticity, the Gangs of Wasseypur director termed Vanga as a significant figure in the cinematic landscape. “Thank you for being patient and being yourself. Forty days since I first saw Animal and 22 days since I saw it the second time. The biggest game-changer of Hindi cinema in the longest time and a film whose impact (good or bad) which can’t be denied. And the filmmaker who takes it all on his chin. Great evening spent with him," Kashyap concluded his note.

Kashyap’s praise for the Animal director comes close on the heels of the makers of the actioner courting controversy over their ham-handed response to the critics of the film. Recently, the official handle of the film on X had slammed lyricist-screenwriter Javed Akhtar for criticising the film, even going to the extent of calling his “art form a big false”. The film’s handle had earlier taken a sly dig at film critic Sucharita Tyagi while posting about their global box office success.

Animal, which released in theatres on December 1, revolved around Ranvijay (Ranbir), who would go to any extreme lengths to earn adulation from his father (Anil Kapoor). The actioner also featured Rashmika Mandanna, Bobby Deol, Tripti Dimri and Shakti Kapoor in pivotal roles.