Spirit Controversy: Pranay Reddy Vanga claims Deepika Padukone made ‘unreasonable’ demands; says, “She demanded 10 percent from the film’s profit” August 21, 2026 at 01:19PM

The controversy surrounding Deepika Padukone’s exit from Spirit has resurfaced after Pranay Reddy Vanga, brother of filmmaker Sandeep Reddy Vanga, made fresh claims about the disagreements that led to the actress’ departure from the Prabhas-starrer. While reports about Deepika’s demand for an eight-hour workday had earlier become a major talking point, Pranay has now alleged that remuneration and profit-sharing were also part of the discussions.

In a recent interview with NTV, Pranay spoke about the circumstances surrounding Deepika’s exit. He said the discussions involved her remuneration, working hours and other aspects of the project. “The reason is the same as what was already mentioned. One was remuneration, the second was timing. Apart from that, there are some other reasons too,” he said.

According to Pranay, Sandeep had been in talks with Deepika for around one-and-a-half years and was keen to have her on board. He also suggested that her recent box-office success gave her greater leverage during negotiations. However, he said the final decision to move ahead with another actress was Sandeep’s.

#DeepikaPadukone asked for unreasonable Remuneration hike, her schedule was unprofessional & unfair to the rest of the team, and she wanted 10% of post release profit from #Spirit - #PranayReddyVanga

This led to Sandeep choosing #TriptiDimri 👀 #Prabhas‌ #SandeepReddyVanga pic.twitter.com/GnafTRUWXv — The Climax India (@TheClimaxIndia) August 20, 2026

Pranay further claimed that Deepika had asked for a share in the film’s profits. “She demanded 10 percent from the film’s profit. Soon after, everything went overboard. See, she can ask for anything. If we are willing to give, we can give. But the economics (budget) should also work out for us. We thought that it was not working. This is why we thought of other options. Once we started looking for other options, they started leaking everything.”

He also alleged that details discussed privately about the film’s story and Deepika’s character later became public. “We discussed the story and character with her. Things discussed internally should not be revealed but she leaked all of them. That is why we are disturbed,” he said.

Following Deepika’s exit, Triptii Dimri was announced as her replacement. The controversy intensified after reports about the film’s plot emerged online, prompting Sandeep to express his anger on X and accuse someone of disclosing details he had shared in confidence.

Also Read : Deepika Padukone to wrap first Raaka schedule before maternity break; set to return in January 2027: Report

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