The story behind Anil Kapoor’s tattoos in ‘Malang’ – Times of India

Anil Kapoor, who plays Anjaney Agashe, a police officer with grey shades in ‘Malang‘, will be seen sporting temporary tattoos — a skull on each arm — in the film. Although his screen presence and acting chops are enough to make his character look convincing, tattoos were added to his look as a part of the narrative. Anil shares, “I met a local tattoo artiste in London, who asked me a lot of questions about my past and present, which intrigued me. I didn’t know that tattoo artistes dig so deep to know you as a person, before deciding the design. Eventually, it didn’t work out with her, and we got someone from India. Finalising the design for my character wasn’t an overnight decision, it went through a lot of thinking. The tattoos are crucial to the character as they take him to his past, gives him energy — positive and negative — and a reason to live.”

So, were the tattoos added to lend his character a more menacing look? The actor replies, “It is more internal. The character is layered and is not someone who will wake up in the morning, do his hair, shave or grow his beard to look menacing. Whatever he does, comes organically to him. I have not used the tattoos as a prop. It just helps me to get into the character.”

Interestingly, Anil does not have any permanent tattoo. Talking about why he never got one, he reveals, “I wanted to, but Sunita (his wife) was against it and warned me that I won’t be allowed in the house if I got inked. Harsh and Sonam are the only two family members who have tattoos. Harsh has got both his sisters’ names — Sonam and Rhea — etched on his back. I joke with him that his girlfriends and wife will get scared of them. Sonam was in Singapore when she got inked without informing anyone.”