Range Rovers, Rolls-Royce, Rolex, Ray-Ban, and more: Ranbir Kapoor's 'Animal' roars with collabs

Sandeep Reddy Vanga-directed Animal has become the second-highest global opener of Bollywood movies in 2023. Featuring Ranbir Kapoor in the lead role, it has collected around Rs 220 crore globally till now. Though the director is famous for making violent movies like Kabir Singh and Arjun Reddy, the audience highly anticipated the movie and the hype is working well.

Portraying a well-established and rich family, the movie has paved the way for some luxury brand collaborations. The star-studded movie includes Anil Kapoor, Rashmika Mandanna, Bobby Deol, Prem Chopra and Tripti Dimri.

Automobiles

The movie features luxury cars like Range Rover, Rolls-Royce, Mercedes Benz, Skoda, Jeep Wrangler Rubicon and Ford in almost every scene. Range Rovers got the best spotlight among others.

Action movies include car chasing, daring speeding stunts and fighting sequels. According to Pranay Anthwal, founder, Happy Lion, “Many a times, these are not integrations but done purely by the maker to establish character or scene. And three Rovers remarkably portrayed the wealthy lifestyle of the protagonist.”

Hamsini Shivakumar,  brand consultant, strategist and semiotician, Leapfrog, agrees with the above statement. She adds, “Brands haven’t disclosed any integrations. Producers would have chosen these to add more prestige and authenticity to the film. Obviously, people will be excited to recognise known brands like BMW and Rolls-Royce.”

In the film, the protagonist gifts a customised Rolls-Royce to his girlfriend. He asks the brand team to copy the exact colour of the bruise mark he gave on her neck. “Though this looks scripted by the film-makers, they might face consequences for this bold move”, added Anthwal.

Shivakumar on the other hand feels that it is just a part of the impossible fantasy heroism portrayed in the movie. “The idea that you can get a customised colour car for somebody might actually add cache to the brand.”

Apparels and accessories 

The film starts with Ranbir Kapoor wearing Ray-Ban glasses and the legacy continues in the entire film. Time shines golden for the protagonist’s family with Rolex watches on the screen. 

The audience might have missed Tom Ford, a luxury apparel brand. It builds the lead actor’s 'alpha-male image' as he prefers a global brand even for underwear.

Gadgets

Macbooks, iPhones and Airpods are spotlighted throughout the film, indulging in the rich conversations. Aviation headphones from Global Business Headsets also got a little limelight.

The most-unexpected collab

The movie has embedded the ‘Make in India’ campaign. It shows a 500- kilogram machine gun, manufactured and assembled in India, Atma Nirbhar Bharat as the actor said. 

Audiences expected some serious action in the film and the director fulfilled their wish with this scene, adding a patriotic feeling. It got trolled on social media for being CGI-generated, Suresh Selvarajan, the production designer, clarified that the gun was built from scratch using real steel over a period of four months.

As Anthwal explains, “Atma Nirbhar Bharat mention could be a hat tip to the mood of the nation. Through this, the makers want the fundamental elements of the storyline to resonate with a broader audience.”

Apart from these, Swiggy got a verbal mention. Bridgestone, a tyre and rubber company, flashed for a few seconds in a village scene, connecting the storyline of an extremely wealthy family with links in the rural area.

Animal has been the talk of the town since its release and the brands included align with the script. It endorses brands that embody action, male heroism and, most importantly, wealth.

Shivakumar suggests, “The brands included are not specifically women-focused. If there were some feminine brands like skin care whose audience comprises mainly women then they might have faced some backlash.”

Additionally, the brand integrations in the movie seem unpaid and organic. There is an opportunity to turn them into successful collaborations.

"Marketers can't share script and big brands wouldn't partner based on minimal information. Studios should bring in lawyers and get NDA's (non- disclosure agreement) signed to officially collaborate with brands. And if one big movie does this and shows a case study for how big brands collaborated and benefitted in terms of reach and sales, then it might become mainstream," Anthwal adds.

All the images used in the story belong to T-Series.