Deepika Padukone exited Sandeep Reddy Vanga’s Spirit after reports of a conflict between the two regarding fixed working hours. The incident sparked a wider debate in the film industry about the working conditions of actors and crew members. Amidst the ongoing conversation, Rashmika Mandanna — who previously collaborated with Vanga in Animal — has weighed in on the work schedules of actors, including extreme cases where they work for 2-3 days straight.
Speaking to Mojo Story about the issue, Rashmika shared her experience working across multiple film industries and offered perspective on the differences in working hours. “I do work in multiple industries which is for example, in the South – Telugu industry, Kannada industry, or Tamil industry, we work 9 am to 6 pm, like it’s our office hours. After shoot, we spend time with family, we go to sleep and we head to shoot the next day. In Hindi, I’ve realised it’s a 9 am to 9 pm shift. It’s 12 working hours so now as an actor, I am open to both of these working hours because this is what my firm requires.”
Rashmika Mandanna pointed out that while the film industry is currently debating fixed working hours following the reported clash between Deepika Padukone and Sandeep Reddy Vanga, the conversation should ideally be held between the filmmaker and the actor prior to signing a contract. “Today the whole country is debating about flexible hours and everything, but that is for discussion amongst the teams and figure out what works for them. It’s their personal choices, so that’s what I believe in. I feel like every film have to have that discussion and to be open to how many hours in the day they want to work,” she said.
Rashmika further elaborated on how some film shoots go far beyond regular working hours, often stretching into consecutive days. “Some films you can start 9 am to 9 pm, but they actually carries on till the next day, 9 pm, so you’re working like 36 hours-48 hours. They are films where we work around the clock, it’s pretty normal. So like today when the debate is going on, I know a lot of people have opinions about it, and rightly so. But it’s fair that you went and told your director, ‘Okay, this is the timeframe I want to work in. Can we do this.’ Of course, it’s their personal debate. But, just to throw a little light on these things, there are much worse scenarios happening where you are working 2-3 days without going home, you know without having a little nap.”
