‘What wrong is Deepika demanding?': Kajol and Rani did 8-hour shifts too, says director Siddharth P. Malhotra as Bollywood debate heats up

Economic Times

3 hours ago

Agencies
Deepika Padukone's reported exit from Spirit over her request for an eight-hour workday has reignited debate on humane work hours in Indian cinema. Director Siddharth P Malhotra defended her stance, citing past examples like Rani Mukerji and Kajol who also worked limited shifts post-motherhood.
Last month, reports broke that Deepika Padukone had stepped away from Sandeep Reddy Vanga's much-anticipated Telugu cop drama Spirit . The reason? Her request for an eight-hour workday. The demand, made just eight months after the birth of her daughter Dua Padukone, sparked debate across the industry and social media, with many questioning whether actors should dictate such terms in big-budget productions. Now, director Siddharth P Malhotra has come out in her support, pointing out that such working conditions are not only reasonable but have long existed in the industry.
Speaking to IANS, Malhotra recalled wrapping his 2018 film Hichki —starring Rani Mukerji—in just 28 eight-hour shifts. The film, produced by Aditya Chopra under Yash Raj Films, marked Rani's return to the screen after giving birth to her daughter Adira in 2015. 'For 14 months, I have been there in front of her face. So I kept asking myself, 'Is it going to be worth it?'' Rani had shared in a past interview, reflecting on her emotional struggle as a new mother rejoining work. But Malhotra confirmed the working hours were kept tight and clear. 'She's asking for family time, what wrong is she demanding?' he asked bluntly. 'People are just gaining publicity in the name of Deepika Padukone.'
Malhotra also pointed to his debut film We Are Family (2010), in which lead actor Kajol, a mother herself at the time, insisted on fixed working hours. 'When I shot with Kajol in 2010, she used to do eight-hour shifts. She made it very clear she'd either come from 10 am to 6 pm or 7 am to 2 pm,' he said, underscoring that the practice predates the current noise around Deepika's decision. Kajol recently echoed this sentiment to PTI, stating, 'I didn't work for 20 or 30 hours. I was always very clear that we would work a certain amount only, and my mom (veteran actor Tanuja) also backed me up big time on it.'
Malhotra believes that directors should match their production plans with the availability of their actors—especially when such conditions are set transparently from the outset. 'If Deepika Padukone has made these conditions clear right from the start, then the director shouldn't work with her if it doesn't suit them,' he said. 'If I need an actor and am confident I can finish the film within those working hours, I'd work with them even for six hours a day.'
He added that if Vanga's vision for Spirit required longer working hours, he was within his rights to recast. And that's exactly what has happened: Vanga has now brought Animal star Triptii Dimri on board as the lead opposite Prabhas in the film.
While the industry is known for grueling shifts and punishing timelines, the conversation sparked by Padukone's stance opens a new chapter—one that addresses work-life balance, especially for women returning to work post-motherhood.