For a long time, Bobby Deol remained one of Bollywood’s most underrated actors, quietly waiting for the right opportunity to prove himself again. While he had delivered memorable films in the past, there was a phase in his career when work slowed down and he struggled to find strong roles. But everything changed after his powerful performance in Animal, where he played the dangerous and violent Abrar Haque. Interestingly, while audiences loved his villainous avatar, his father Dharmendra was initially surprised to learn that his son would be playing a negative role.
During a candid conversation on Shekhar Tonite with Shekhar Suman, Bobby shared an emotional and heartwarming anecdote about his father’s reaction after Animal released. According to the actor, Dharmendra immediately asked him, “Tu villain hai?” — clearly surprised that Bobby had taken on such a dark character.
Bobby explained that he reassured his father by telling him that although the role was that of a villain, it was extremely well-written and important to the story. The actor said he felt confident that the character would leave a strong impact despite not having lengthy dialogues.
And that is exactly what happened. Even though Bobby appeared only in the latter half of the film and had almost no spoken lines, his intense expressions, body language and screen presence became one of the highlights of Animal. His entry sequence, action scenes and emotionally charged climax generated massive reactions in theatres, with audiences cheering loudly during his scenes.
Bobby also revealed how director Sandeep Reddy Vanga first noticed him. According to him, Vanga had come across a viral photograph of Bobby sitting at a sporting event with a serious and intense expression on his face. The filmmaker reportedly felt that the expression perfectly matched the energy he wanted for Abrar Haque.
Recalling the moment, Bobby said Vanga personally called him and mentioned that the photograph convinced him he was the right choice for the role. For Bobby, the call came at a very important phase in his career when he was looking for characters that could challenge him and break his image.
Released in 2023, Animal starred Ranbir Kapoor in the lead role as Ranvijay Singh, alongside Rashmika Mandanna, Triptii Dimri and Anil Kapoor. The action drama became one of the year’s biggest blockbusters and sparked huge conversations online because of its violent storytelling, father-son emotions and larger-than-life characters.
For Bobby Deol, however, the film became much more than just a commercial success. It completely changed the way audiences and filmmakers looked at him. Fans started referring to him as “Lord Bobby” on social media, celebrating his comeback and appreciating the intensity he brought to negative roles.
Before Animal, Bobby had already started rebuilding his career through projects like Race 3 alongside Salman Khan and the successful web series Aashram directed by Prakash Jha. His portrayal of Baba Nirala in Aashram especially earned praise because it showed a darker and more layered side of him as an actor.
Now, Bobby is enjoying one of the strongest phases of his career. The actor has several major projects lined up and is being offered roles that are far more performance-oriented than before. In 2025, he received attention for appearing in The Ba***ds of Bollywood, directed by Aryan Khan.
He will next be seen in Bandar directed by Anurag Kashyap, a project that is already creating curiosity among fans because of its unusual title and Kashyap’s style of storytelling. Bobby is also part of Alpha, starring Alia Bhatt and Sharvari.
From romantic hero to action star to now one of Bollywood’s most talked-about antagonists, Bobby Deol’s career has gone through several transformations. And with Animal, he proved that sometimes a villain’s role can become bigger than the hero himself.
