Jul 21, 2026 8:30pm IST
Anjali Anand On ‘Dhamaal 4’: ‘My First Instinct Was To Say No.’ Here’s Why She Changed Her Mind (EXCLUSIVE)
For Anjali Anand, “Dhamaal 4” is more than just her biggest commercial film to date. It is the culmination of years of persistence, television grind, and waiting for an opportunity that could finally put her in front of a wider audience. The actor, who won audiences over with “Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani” before stepping into Indra Kumar’s comedy franchise opposite Riteish Deshmukh, has also found herself at the center of conversations around body image and representation.
While some viewers questioned the jokes around her character’s appearance, Anand says she has never seen herself as a victim and refuses to let the discourse define her. In an interview with Variety India, Anand opened up about navigating body shaming, choosing “Dhamaal 4” despite her initial hesitation, why television became her acting school and why she believes kindness matters more than labels.
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‘My first instinct was to say no’
Anand admits that when she first heard the narration of “Dhamaal 4,” she was conflicted. “The first time I heard the narration, my first instinct was to say no because I said this is completely opposite of everything that I stand for in life. But then I thought about it and said, “Who is giving me this opportunity to be part of this cast and this franchise and have so much screen time?” I said, who else is giving me this opportunity? Is anybody writing anything? No.”
Anjali says she decided to embrace the role rather than reject it. “If someone is going to play this part, it’s going to be me, and I’m going to make sure that I make this part my own and I own it in a way that nobody will victimize Paro. Everybody will only love her, and in the end, love prevails. I would put a little bit of Anjali into Paro, give her that strength, and make her the main character of the film. That is my belief and my talent for what I can do with it.”
‘I am anything but my body’
Following the film’s release, Anand faced online criticism, with many discussions focusing solely on her appearance rather than her performance. She says that is exactly the narrative she wants to change. “My narrative outside in this world is all about my body, and I don’t talk about my body at all. If, in a half-hour, 45-minute interview, I speak about 100 other things, someone will pick out that one line and just talk to me about my body. They victimize me; I don’t know why. I am the biggest person. I am the most non-victim person ever.”
Asked about criticism from people who felt the film was not body-positive enough, Anand says she understands the conversation but believes her own journey must be viewed in a broader context. “Tomorrow, when I do make it big, and I do parts which they have been waiting for me to do, I will get to those parts by doing these parts now. I am not here to say that shaming is good or bad or whatever. I am not the pioneer of anything. I am just a pioneer of how people should be kind. I’m just here to show people that there’s all kinds of beauty.”
She adds that if audiences only noticed her size and not her performance, that says more about them than it does about her. “If my size is all they saw and not the way I have acted and how I have shone in that part, then it’s a you problem. It’s not a me problem.”
‘People have made me all about my body’
The actor also spoke candidly about the mental toll that online commentary can take. “People have just made me all about my body, and I hate that. I am so many things. I’m anything but my body. Every compliment I get is also backhanded. ‘You are fat but beautiful.’ I’m like, just say beautiful. I did “Dhai Kilo Prem,” and within two months I was cast for “Kulfi Kumar Bajlewala.” There were people who said that now that “Dhai Kilo Prem” is done, who’s going to write another script for you? Now you have to lose weight, you have to be like Bhumi (Pednekar). I said, ‘Who are these people and what are these rules? What are these opinions? I’ll just be who I want to be and whatever I feel like doing’.”
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