Bobby Deol recently opened up about being anxious during the long waiting period before he shot for Sandeep Reddy Vanga’s Animal. He feared that the makers would change their mind and not cast him. The film starred Ranbir Kapoor and Rashmika Mandanna in the lead roles.

In an interview with Humans of Bombay, Bobby recalled how he was cast for the role of Abrar in the film. He said, “I got a message from him (Sandeep Reddy Vanga). He introduced himself and told me he wanted to meet me for a film. I thought, ‘Is it really him?’ I called and arranged the meeting. He showed me a photo of myself from when I participated in the Celebrity Cricket League and said, ‘I want to cast you because I love this expression of yours.”

He was a bit hesitant to take on the role as it was out of his comfort zone but he took on the challenge. “When Sandeep told me that my character would be mute, I thought, ‘But my voice is my strength,’ yet I still decided to go for it,” he added.

Speaking about the long wait before he shot for the film, Bobby said, “I waited 1.5 years to shoot the film. The film is 3.5 hours long, so they were shooting with Ranbir for a long time, and during that period, I kept thinking, ‘Are they going to change their mind? Will they suddenly say they don’t need me?’ Those thoughts crossed my mind, but Sandeep Reddy is a sweetheart. I learned sign language for the role. It became a huge success—although I never imagined it would become a cult hit, I had a gut feeling about it.”

The film released last year in December and opened to polarising opinions, with some people calling it out for its misogyny and violence while others praising the performances of Ranbir and Bobby. The film turned out to be a huge success at the box office.