'Laapataa Ladies' beats 'Animal' on Netflix

To the anti-fans of Ranbir Kapoor’s misogynistic toxic masculinity mascot Animal, it will come as a welcome surprise that Netflix viewing figures for Kiran Rao’s Laapataa Ladies have surpassed those of the former. 

Laapataa Ladies, the comedic tale of two brides who inadvertently switch places at a train station post-wedding, premiered in theatres on March 1 and later on Netflix. According to Firstpost, the Aamir Khan production has racked up 13.8 million views on the streaming platform. By contrast, the global blockbuster Animal, directed by Sandeep Reddy Vanga, garnered 13.6 million views on Netflix in the first three weeks before dropping out of the top 10 in week four. 

Laapataa Ladies, which stars Sparsh Shrivastava, Pratibha Ranta, Nitanshi Goel, and Ravi Kishan in lead roles, has been welcomed with open arms in the UK in particular since its OTT debut. The film’s atypical take on relationships blended with compelling storytelling has resonated with audiences, with viewers and critics alike having praised Laapataa Ladies for its character depth and nuanced portrayal of relationships. 

A testament to the film’s strong word-of-mouth reception, one viewer gushed, “It’s become very popular in the UK. All my local friends loved it. They have only watched movies like Bahubali. So proud when they talk about Laapataa Ladies.” Echoing similar sentiments, another user noted, “This movie deserves all the attention.”

Meanwhile, Animal may feature Bollywood heavyweight Ranbir, who can draw in numbers based on his face alone, but the action-drama sparked a heated debate about its glorification of harmful behaviour. However, Ranbir defended the themes of the film, claiming that the characters were intended to provoke dialogue and discussion. 

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