Deepika Padukone 'likes' post throwing shade at Sandeep Reddy Vanga in Spirit row: 'Misogyny couldn't handle woman's no'

Deepika Padukone showed her support to an Instagram post shading Sandeep Reddy Vanga over her exit from his film Spirit.

Published on: Aug 22, 2026, 09:17:40 IST

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It has been over a year since Deepika Padukone walked out of Sandeep Reddy Vanga’s Spirit, but the controversy around it refuses to die down. Deepika’s exit and the reported reasons around it had generated significant buzz at the time, and the issue came into the limelight this week once again after director Vanga’s brother claimed the real reason for Deepika’s exit was the production’s refusal to heed her 10% profit share demand. Following this, a social media post called out the two Vanga brothers for their statements, and it drew support from Deepika herself.

Deepika likes post calling out Sandeep Reddy Vanga

On Friday, journalist Janvi Manchanda shared a long note in the form of a carousel post on Instagram. Referring to Pranay Vanga’s recent statement, the post was captioned, “Sandeep Reddy Vanga’s brother Pranay claims Deepika Padukone asked for 10% profit share of Spirit and I’m just wondering, did we forget male actors have been doing this for years? Why is a woman doing the same NEWS?” In the post, Janvi called out the double standard of admonishing a woman for just asking for what has become the norm for men in the industry. The first slide read: “Breaking: Deepika Padukone Allegedly Wanted 10% Of Spirit's Profits. Judging by the meltdown, you'd think she asked for the entire film and Vanga estate. Sounds like we have a full-blown male-ego crisis on our hands. A woman rejected a deal, and misogyny couldn't handle a woman's "no."”

Deepika Padukone showed her support for the post by liking it. By Saturday morning, the post had over 8k likes in 12 hours, along with close to 2K reposts and shares, showing support from a lot of Deepika fans.

What had Pranay Vanga said

Deepika had left Spirit last year, with reports claiming she could not come to terms with the production’s demands, and had insisted on an 8-hour workday for her as a new mother. But in a recent interview with NTV Telugu, Pranay Reddy Vanga said the exit was due to Deepika asking for 10% share in the film’s profits. “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. 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,” Pranay said.

Deepika’s exit from Spirit and the drama that followed

Deepika Padukone had been slated to start filming Sandeep Reddy Vanga’s Prabhas-starrer Spirit last year. But in April, it emerged that the actor had exited the project. The actor asked for a fixed 8-hour workday as a new mother, a demand that was not met by the film’s production. The makers of Kalki 2898 AD also announced her exit from the sequel through a post on X, sparking online debate about professionalism, work-hour limits, and remuneration in high-budget projects. After stories about Triptii Dimri replacing Deepika leaked, some reports claimed Deepika left the film as she was uncomfortable with certain intimate scenes. Director Sandeep fumed on Twitter: “When I narrate a story to an actor, I place 100% faith. There is an unsaid NDA (Non-Disclosure Agreement) between us. But by doing this, you've 'DISCLOSED' the person that you are…. Putting down a Younger actor and ousting my story? Is this what your feminism stands for?”

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A post shared by Sandeep Reddy Vanga (@sandeepreddy.vanga)

Triptii eventually did replace Deepika in the film. The first look featuring her and Prabhas was launched on New Year’s Day 2026. The film also stars Vivek Oberoi in the lead role, and is slated to release on March 5, 2027.

Deepika, meanwhile, has two big films lined up. She will be seen next in King with Shah Rukh Khan. Deepika is also slated to star alongside Atlee’s Raaka, opposite Allu Arjun.

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