Presently, Deepika Padukone is on maternity leave
The actress was part of several big films released in the last two years
The future is bright for Deepika Padukone as she is now part of some of India’s leading film franchises such as YRF’s Spy Universe, Rohit Shetty’s Cop Universe, Ayan Mukerji’s Brahmastra Universe and Nag Ashwin’s Kalki Cinematic Universe.
Following her Hindi film debut in 2007, Deepika Padukone is now possibly the biggest female actor of the Indian Cinema. Her recent release Kalki 2898 AD has opened to international critical acclaim and is on the verge of emerging as one of the highest-grossing films in India.
Deepika Padukone made her film debut with a 2006 Kannada language film titled ‘Aishwarya’. The actress is originally from Bangalore.
However, she got her breakthrough by debuting in the 2007 Hindi language film ‘Om Shanti Om’. The film featured prominent Bollywood actor Shahrukh Khan opposite her. The film Om Shanti Om gained widespread popularity and Deepika Padukone became a household name in India. Following the success of Om Shanti Om, Deepika starred in many hit films such as Bachna Ae Haseeno, Love Aaj Kaal, Desi Boyz, Housefull, Cocktail, and Race 2.
In 2013, Deepika Padukone had her best movie year by starring in three major commercially successful films. Her first release of 2013 was Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani. She was paired with Ranbir Kapoor and the film was directed by Ayan Mukerji. Upon its release, Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani received widespread critical acclaim and became one of the highest-grossing films of 2013. Her second release of 2013 was Chennai Express where she was paired opposite Shahrukh Khan. The Rohit Shetty directional ‘Chennai Express’ received positive reviews and emerged as one of the biggest hits of 2013. Deepika’s last and third release of 2013 was with Ranveer Singh in Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Ram Leela. The film had opened to positive reviews and remerged a big success.
Post-2013, she starred in many hit films such as Happy New Year, Padmaavat, Bajirao Mastani, and Piku. Her last Hindi release was a film titled ‘Fighter’ where she was paired opposite Hrithik Roshan. The aerial action film starred Hrithik Roshan and Deepika Padukone as Air Force Pilots and the film was directed by Sidharth Anand. Despite opening to mixed reviews, Fighter was commercially successful.
Spy Universe, Cop Universe, Brahmastra Universe, and Kalki Cinematic Universe
In January 2023, Deepika alongside Shahrukh Khan featured in YRF’s Spy Universe’s Pathaan. YRF’s Spy Universe is Bollywood’s biggest and most successful film franchise. The Spy Universe films are Ek Tha Tiger (2012), Tiger Zinda Hai (2017), War (2019), Pathaan (2023), and Tiger 3 (2023).
The next film from the YRF Spy Universe is War 2 which marks the Hindi debut of Telugu superstar Jr NTR. The Spy Universe film includes leading actors of Bollywood such as Salman Khan as Tiger, Shahrukh Khan as Pathaan, Hrithik Roshan as Kabir, Katrina Kaif as Zoya, and Deepika Padukone as Rubina. Pathaan (2023) is one of the highest-grossing Indians ever collecting over 1000 crores. A sequel of Pathaan titled Pathaan 2 is confirmed and Deepika Padukone will likely reprise her role. With The Spy Universe, Deepika is a part of one of India’s leading film franchises.
In 2024, Deepika Padukone will be seen making a special appearance in Rohit Shetty’s Cop Universe film titled ‘Singham Again’. Rohit Shetty’s Cop Universe is another big and successful Indian film franchise and now Deepika is part of it too.
Rohit Shetty’s Cop Universe films are Singham (2011), Singham Returns (2014), Simmba (2018), Sooryavanshi (2021), and Singham Again which is slated to release in 2024. Rohit Shetty’s Cop Universe comprises big actors like Ajay Devgn as DCP Bajirao Singham, Akshay Kumar as DCP Veer Sooryavanshi, and Ranveer Singh as ACP Simmba. Alongside Deepika Padukone, Tiger Shroff is the newest addition to Rohit Shetty’s Cop Universe. While Deepika will make a special appearance in Singham Again, she is projected to work on a standalone female cop film with Rohit Shetty.
Deepika Padukone is now also part of Nag Ashwin’s ambitious film franchise Cinematic Universe. The first part of Kalki 2898 AD was released recently with Prabhas, Deepika Padukone, Amitabh Bachchan, and Kamal Hassan in the leads.
With a budget of over 600 crores, Kalki 2898 AD is the most expensive Indian film ever. Released on 27 June 2024, Kalki 2898 AD has received international critical acclaim and is called one of the best films of the decade. The film is directed by Nag Ashwin and produced by C. Ashwini Dutt. The film has already collected over 500 crores in four days and is expected to gross over 1500 crores making it one of the highest-grossing Indian films ever. With Kalki 2898 AD, Deepika is now part of one of the biggest film franchises in the Telugu Film Industry. The second part of Kalki 2898 AD is set to be released in the coming years.
Besides, YRF’s SPY Universe, Rohit Shetty’s Cop Universe, and Nag Ashwin’s Kalki 2898 AD, Deepika is also part of Ayan Mukerji’s Brahmastra.
Ayan Mukerji’s Brahmastra was one of the most awaited films ever since it was announced in 2014. The film faced numerous delays and was finally released in 2022. The film is directed by Ayan Mukerji and it is produced by Karan Johar.
Brahmastra had opened to mixed reviews and was appreciated for its screenplay, execution, graphics, and VFX. The film was commercially successful. The film starred an ensemble cast of Ranbir Kapoor, Alia Bhatt, Mouni Roy, and Nagarjuna. The film had a guest appearance by Shahrukh Khan and an uncredited cameo of Deepika Padukone. The second part and the third part of Brahmastra are slated to release in the coming years with Deepika Padukone playing one of the leads.
With being a major part of India’s four leading film franchises, Deepika has cemented her place as India’s leading female actor. However, she has a tough coemption from Alia Bhatt who has quite a few big films on her hand.
As of now, Deepika will be taking a maternity film. All of her recent films have been released and she is not part of any film shooting schedule for at least a year. She will be seen next only in Rohit Shetty’s ‘Singham Returns’ which releases on Diwali 2024.