Before Deepika Padukone left Sandeep Reddy Vanga, Prabhas' Spirit; she walked out of this film, was called 'unpofessional', returned only after...

Spirit is one of the most awaited Indian films as it marks the union of two powerhouses, Sandeep Reddy Vanga and Prabhas. Till the last week, Deepika Padukone was supposed to play the leading female role in Spirit. However, as per reports, the Piku actress walked out from the film when her conditions were not met. On Saturday, May 24, Vanga officially announced Triptii Dimri as the leading lady in Spirit. A source was quoted telling Bollywood Hungama, "Sandeep Reddy Vanga got the shock of his life when Deepika Padukone refused to shoot for more than 6 hours a day for Spirit. That's not all, the actress, via her agency, also started to demand an amendment to the contract. Their point of contention was simple - if the shoot extends beyond 100 days, Deepika will have to be paid extra for every single day of shoot beyond the commitment on paper."

This is not the first instance when Deepika has walked out from a film. It happened around a decade earlier too when she left Race 2 after shooting  the film for six days. Producer Ramesh Taurani had publicly called out the actress then and called her "unprofessional." Talking to Mumbai Mirror in February 2012, the producer said, "I have been a part of the Hindi cinema industry for 25 years. I have made several blockbusters. I have worked with famous actresses like Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Katrina Kaif, Vidya Balan and Kareena Kapoor. But I have never faced a situation like this before. Earlier, in October (2011), we had to change our schedule since Deepika had date problems. This was due to her film with Ayan Mukerji to be produced by Karan Johar (Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani released in 2013). At the time, I had spoken to Karan and worked out a schedule that would help Deepika manage both projects."

Ramesh Taurani further added, "Now, when everything is in place, she just walks out after six days of shoot. What can I say? We are left with no choice. Our directors and the other actors are extremely annoyed with her. She gave us 90 days - fifteen days in February, 45 days in May-June and 20 days in July. We had assured her that we wouldn’t waste any of her dates. On January 27, she walked out from the film. People kept calling me asking whether Deepika was out of Race 2. I was clueless. I called her and asked her. She simply said that she would come to my office by 5 pm with her new manager to work out everything. At around 3 pm, she called to say that she wouldn’t be able to keep the appointment."

"However, her manager would be present on her behalf. Finally, when the manager arrived, he simply told me that Deepika wouldn’t be able to do our film. And that’s because she is doing a major Hollywood project. Now imagine! I went to Kurla where she was shooting. We tried to reason it out with her. But she refused to even listen. Forget about anything else, she did not even apologise for her actions. She seems to have no remorse. I had no choice but to file a complaint against her in the AMPTPP and CINTAA. I am deeply saddened by this unprofessional behaviour", the producer concluded.

After the issue was brought to the attention of the two organisations, Deepika met with Taurani and agreed to return to Race 2. According to Mumbai Mirror, she set five conditions: she would not allocate any new dates for the film; she asked Ramesh Taurani and directors Abbas-Mustan to communicate with her directly rather than through intermediaries; she would choose her own designers, hairstylist, and makeup artist; she wanted to be consulted about the film’s release to prevent any confusion during promotions; and she requested to be informed at least a month in advance if any overseas shooting was planned. Reportedly, the makers accepted her terms, and Race 2 shoot was resumed.

Also starring Saif Ali Khan, John Abraham, Jacqueline Fernandez, Anil Kapoor, and Ameesha Patel, Race 2 was finally released in the theatres on January 25, 2013. The Abbas-Mustan directorial received mixed reviews from the audiences and critics, and grossed Rs 165 crore worldwide against its reported budget of Rs 90 crore.

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