The controversy over Deepika Padukone’s exit from Spirit has resurfaced after Sandeep Reddy Vanga’s brother Pranay Reddy Vanga made fresh claims about the dispute. While Deepika’s reported demand for an eight-hour work shift had earlier been a major talking point, Pranay has now alleged that her remuneration and profit-sharing expectations were also among the issues that led to disagreements.

In a recent interview, Pranay explained the reasons behind the casting change, saying Deepika Padukone’s remuneration expectations did not work for Spirit.

According to Pranay, Sandeep Reddy Vanga had always wanted Deepika Padukone for Spirit and had been in talks with her for around one to one-and-a-half years. The director was keen to cast her after being impressed by her performance. He suggested that her strong box-office track record gave Deepika greater power during negotiations. However, things changed as discussions progressed.

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 claimed that the negotiations reached a turning point when Deepika asked for a share of the film’s profits instead of a higher remuneration.

He said, “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.”

Pranay further said “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.

Pranay further said “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 pissed.”

Sandeep’s brother also clarified that, according to his account, the dispute was not simply over an additional Rs 5–6 crore in remuneration.

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