Deepika's 10% profit demand led to Spirit fallout, says producer Pranay Vanga

Producer Pranay Reddy Vanga said Deepika Padukone's fee, timings and other demands led Spirit to move on. He said leaked discussions and false casting narratives later angered director Sandeep Reddy Vanga.

In Short

• Deepika Padukone sought 10% post-release net income for Spirit
• Scheduling conflicts and other issues made collaboration unviable
• Sandeep Reddy Vanga decided to replace Deepika after year-long talks

Deepika Padukone's exit from Spirit was not just about dates or remuneration. According to the film's producer, Pranay Reddy Vanga, the actor's demand for 10 per cent of the film's post-release net income, along with scheduling issues and other factors, eventually made the collaboration financially unviable for the makers. The decision to move on from Padukone was taken by director Sandeep Reddy Vanga, who had been in discussions with her for over a year.

In a new interview with NTV Telugu, Pranay has now opened up about what led to the casting change, explaining why the makers felt Padukone's remuneration expectations no longer worked for Spirit.

According to Pranay, Sandeep wanted Deepika for Spirit and had been speaking to her for around one to one-and-a-half years. The director was keen to cast her after liking her performance. However, the equation changed over time.

He said, "First was remuneration, second was timings. Not just that, there were other reasons as well. I don't remember on top of my head right now. But yeah, multiple things. It was Sandeep's call."

Pranay also mentioned that once the team felt that the economics no longer worked, they began exploring other options.

He continued, "But a lot changes in a period of time. Even some of her films went on to become hits, so she started demanding 10 per cent of nett income (post-release profit). Thus, everything went overboard. They (actors) can ask anything. If you are willing to give, we can give."

Sandeep Reddy Vanga was irritated by false narratives

He also addressed the controversy that followed, including Sandeep's strongly worded post about "dirty PR games" and the circulation of private conversations around the film. Pranay stressed that the decision to move away from Deepika was ultimately Sandeep's.

According to Pranay, the situation became more contentious when details from the discussions began circulating publicly after the team started considering other options.

That, he suggested, was particularly upsetting for Sandeep, who believed that conversations around a film should remain private until the makers were ready to reveal them.

"Once we started looking at other options, a lot of intricate details which we discussed for over a year started circulating. That's where he got pissed off," he explained.

What Sandeep's 'dirty PR games' post was about

The casting controversy became more public in May 2025, when Sandeep posted a strongly worded message on X referring to "dirty PR games".

Although he did not name Deepika, the post was widely interpreted as being directed at her. Sandeep spoke about an "unsaid NDA" between a filmmaker and an actor, accused the unnamed actor of disclosing details about the project and questioned whether "putting down a younger actor" was what their feminism stood for.

See the post here:

A day later, he announced Triptii Dimri as the female lead of Spirit.

Pranay has now defended his brother's reaction, saying Sandeep is generally calm but can retaliate when he feels strongly about something. According to him, the director took the matter personally because Spirit is a project that means a great deal to him.

About Spirit

Spirit marks Sandeep's reunion with T-Series after Animal, which released in 2023. The Prabhas-led film is being planned as a pan-world entertainer and is set to release in eight languages.

The cast also includes Vivek Oberoi and Aishwarya Desai. Presented by Gulshan Kumar and T-Series, Spirit is written, edited and directed by Sandeep Reddy Vanga and produced by Bhushan Kumar, Pranay Reddy Vanga, Krishan Kumar and Prabhakar Reddy Vanga.

The film is currently scheduled to release in cinemas on March 5, 2027.

- Ends