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3 min readUpdated: Feb 9, 2026 02:29 PM IST
Prakash Raj is very much a part of Sandeep Reddy Vanga's upcoming action drama Spirit.
Veteran actor Prakash Raj is still very much a part of Sandeep Reddy Vanga’s upcoming action drama Spirit, starring Prabhas in the lead role. Since Sunday, there have been rumours and reports doing the rounds online that he was kicked out of the highly-anticipated tentpole film over an argument with the director. However, the actor has now denied there’s any truth to this.
“Some nonsense speculation. I’m not aware of it,” Prakash Raj told SCREEN. He’ll still be seen in a key role alongside Prabhas, Triptii Dimri, Vivek Oberoi, and other cast members in Spirit. It’s co-produced by Vanga’s Bhadrakali Pictures and Bhushan Kumar’s T-Series in their first collaboration after the 2023 blockbuster family crime drama Animal, starring Ranbir Kapoor.
The actor also took to X to post, “To all the toxic #Fakenews peddlers…. On #Spirit the movie . We have not even started shooting for my scenes .. and you whatsup factories speculate stories . Grow up and have a life 😂😂😂😂. #justasking.”
To all the toxic #Fakenews peddlers…. On #Spirit the movie . We have not even started shooting for my scenes .. and you whatsup factories speculate stories . Grow up and have a life 😂😂😂😂. #justasking
— Prakash Raj (@prakashraaj) February 9, 2026
Last year, Spirit made headlines after the controversial exit of Deepika Padukone from the film. Before the film went on floors, she had a disagreement with the makers over shooting more than eight hours every day. She wanted to keep a work-life balance, particularly after the birth of her and husband Ranveer Singh’s daughter Dua Padukone the year before.
After Padukone was replaced by Triptii, who had her major breakthrough with a key role in Vanga’s Animal, the filmmaker took to X to slam Padukone for spreading misinformation and maligning a younger actor like Triptii. However, he only alluded to Padukone, without naming her in the tweet, claiming that she’s playing “dirty PR games”.
Later, Padukone opened up on the controversy and claimed that leading male stars in Hindi cinema have been working less than eight hours for years, without any objections. “I am definitely advocating for a better work life balance and a better working environment and better working conditions and if that doesn’t work for somebody, we’re not obligated to work with each other,” she told Brut India.
Spirit is slated to release in cinemas on March 5, 2027.
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