Dev Patel says Monkey Man is ‘a Trojan horse and a gateway drug’

And that was something very important to Patel, as he explained in an exclusive interview with RadioTimes.com.

“It’s a Trojan horse and it’s also a gateway drug,” he said. “You know, I didn’t want it to be just a history lesson about politics, or religion, or the caste system, or the third gender in India.

“I wanted to address these things, and kind of put these topics that either people are afraid to talk about, or are kind of like figures in society that are kind of pushed to the side – bring them in and give them some real estate in a movie that should normally just be filled with punches and kicks.

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He added: “And the idea is if the film is palpable enough, if it’s engaging enough, then hopefully people will come back and say, oh, I don’t know, man, Indian mythology. Who is that drummer? You know, who is that…and create a conversation.

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The film received rave reviews and enjoyed an enthusiastic reception at last month’s SXSW Festival, where it had its world premiere and won the Audience Award.

And Patel also explained how this reception was particularly meaningful to him given the sometimes painful process of getting to the film‘s finish line.

“It was really quite dark at times,” he said.

“And when it played like that, and we won the People’s Choice Award, I mean, it was… yeah, it was a blessing.”

Monkey Man is released in UK cinemas on Friday April 5, 2024. Check out more of our movie coverage or visit our TV guide and streaming guide to find out what’s on.

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