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Queen star and BJP MP Kangana Ranaut recently weighed in on the long-running debate around 8-hour work shifts in the film industry, a conversation that began when Deepika Padukone exited Spirit and the sequel to Kalki 2898 AD in 2025.

The issue sparked widespread discussion across the industry, with several actors and filmmakers sharing their perspectives on structured working hours in cinema.

Now, nearly a year later, Kangana has come out in support of Deepika, stating that the Padmaavat star has reached a stage in her career where she can make such decisions. She also emphasised that, as a new mother, Deepika has every right to prioritise her time and set her own working conditions.

© Instagram/Kangana Ranaut

In a podcast with ANI, Kangana Ranaut said, “I don't think there should be an issue created out of this because if you see where she (Deepika Padukone) is coming from, she has earned that place. She has a daughter, she's a mother now, and the topmost actress. If today she is keen to work for eight hours, she has earned it.”

Kangana Ranaut also reflected on an old interaction she had with Deepika Padukone during the time the latter was shooting for a film with Imtiaz Ali.

She added, “Deepika and I, when we were together, she said that they were working on Imtiaz's film or something. She said, ‘We have a 12-hour shift.' In response, I said that I work for only 10 hours. She's like 'That's amazing'. So there was a time when we wouldn't settle for anything less than 12-14 hours because we were ferocious. We wanted it. We were at it. We were going for it. We wanted to be successful and wanted all these things.”

Kangana on Deepika’s 8 hour shift demand pic.twitter.com/cIKM6vEkvt

— Kangana Ranaut Daily (@KanganaDaily) April 16, 2026

Kangana Ranaut remarked that in the early stages of a career, actors often have to struggle intensely to establish themselves in the industry. She added that expecting women to put in long working hours while simultaneously managing family responsibilities and raising children places an unfair and excessive burden on them.

Kangana concluded by saying, “When you're new, you're coming up, and you are replaceable. Your place is different. She (Deepika Padukone), being where she is, she's a mother. She's got a family to look after. She's also earned that place where people are going to say, 'Wait a minute, I want her. And it's okay if she comes for eight hours because we'll work around her time. So why not? All the talk about fertility rate, all the talk about marriages collapsing, and all of it, what are we doing? We are putting so much pressure on our women. We are making them work double the amount now with the children.”

Deepika Padukone grabbed headlines after stepping away from Sandeep Reddy Vanga’s Spirit, reportedly due to disagreements over working conditions, including her request for an 8-hour workday.

Months later, the makers of the sequel to Kalki 2898 AD also confirmed her exit, stating that a project of that scale required a higher level of ‘commitment.’

Following her exit from Spirit and the sequel to Kalki 2898 AD, Deepika Padukone announced her next move, reuniting with Shah Rukh Khan in Siddharth Anand’s King.

She also has Raaka in the pipeline, where she will be seen alongside Allu Arjun, further adding to her upcoming slate.