Sandeep Reddy Vanga's 'Dhurandhar Is Built Like A Man' Review Of The Aditya Dhar Film Is The Perfect Example Of 'Rage Bait'

Days after “rage bait" was pronounced the word of the year by Oxford University Press, director Sandeep Reddy Vanga has perfectly demonstrated its meaning in a simple post on X (formerly Twitter). On December 20, the filmmaker took to his social media account to heap praise on Aditya Dhar's directorial and Ranveer Singh headliner, Dhurandhar. Much like all other appreciation posts for the movie, his post went viral, too. However, even while dishing out the positive aspects of the espionage thriller, Vanga did not fail to mention ‘masculinity' and ‘built like a spine’.

In the post, Sandeep Reddy Vanga wrote, “DHURANDHAR is built like a man who doesn't talk much & carries a masculine spine.... DHURANDHAR The title fits because the film moves with dominance & fierce. The depiction is very clear with zero chaos. Music, performances, screenplay & direction are at the top. #AkshayKhanna sir and @RanveerOfficial erased into the air & just disappeared into characters effortlessly."

This post landed on various social media platforms, including Reddit, where some users believed that lines used by the Kabir Singh and Animal filmmaker are ‘rage baity’. According to Oxford Languages, rage bait is defined as "online content deliberately designed to elicit anger or outrage by being frustrating, provocative, or offensive, typically posted in order to increase traffic to or engagement with a particular web page or social media content". In the context of Sandeep Reddy Vanga's post,  the word fits well.

Also Read: Ragebait: Here's What Oxford's Word of the Year 2025 Means 

Sandeep Reddy Vanga, who is infamous for promoting toxic masculinity and misogyny in his films, seems to deliberately use phrases such as ‘built like a man’ and ‘carries a masculine spine’ while describing the movie that is enroute to becoming the highest-grossing Bollywood movie ever. Leaning into his reputation, the filmmaker uses the words that he believes will trigger a response from a certain section on social media. Could his review be written without mentioning the phrases? Perhaps. But would it have made it to social media pages otherwise? Maybe not.

In a much more mellow response to his post, director Aditya Dhar simply said, “Thank you, my Dearest Sandeep. Coming from you, this means a great deal. I’ve always admired the fearlessness with which you stand by your cinema and your faith in unapologetic, masculine storytelling. Dhurandhar was shaped with sincerity, restraint, and conviction—your words give that journey its quiet validation. Grateful for voices like yours that keep Indian cinema honest, rooted, and strong. Two filmmakers, different paths—yet walking as brothers toward a stronger cinema and a braver tomorrow for our country. Cinema remembers the brave, not the agreeable.”

Also Read: Pakistanis Are Obsessing Over Dhurandhar, And Here's The Proof