When Ranbir Kapoor accidentally outed Rashmika Mandanna-Vijay Deverakonda romance: ‘What’s up, re?’

Ranbir was not interested in safe, clean answers. “There is a coincidence here,” he said, leaning in. “Sandeep met Rashmika for the first time at the Arjun Reddy success party, on Vijay’s terrace.”

The studio erupted. Rashmika turned to Ranbir immediately and said, “It’s not necessary to give all this information.” Ranbir laughed. The audience laughed louder. Sandeep Reddy Vanga, sitting right there as the man who had just been outed as the connecting thread between Rashmika and Vijay’s world, looked thoroughly amused.

What Ranbir had just casually revealed on national television was not a small detail. It meant that Rashmika had been present at the success celebration of Arjun Reddy, the film that made Vijay Deverakonda a star, held at Vijay’s own home. It meant the two had been in each other’s lives far earlier than anyone outside their circle had known. And it meant that Sandeep Reddy Vanga, who went on to cast Rashmika in Animal, had first laid eyes on her while standing on her now-husband’s terrace. But Ranbir was still not done.

Also Read: ‘He healed a pain he didn’t cause’: Secret 7-year journey of Vijay Deverakonda-Rashmika Mandanna as they head to Udaipur for ‘VIROSH’ wedding

Earlier in the same segment, before the terrace revelation, he had already put Rashmika on the spot in a different way. When Balakrishna asked Sandeep to call Vijay on air, Ranbir stepped in and told the host directly, ask Rashmika to call him instead, because Vijay would not pick up Sandeep’s call but he would certainly pick up hers. Rashmika hesitated, then dialled.

Vijay answered instantly. His first words were a relaxed, unhurried “What’s up, re?” Rashmika blushed on the spot, reminded him he was on loudspeaker, and held the phone up with a smile she was clearly trying to contain. The crowd cheered. After the call ended, Ranbir pointed at Rashmika and said simply, “So much natural blush came.”

The clip spread quickly at the time. Fans clipped it, rewatched it, and filed it away as the closest thing to confirmation they had received. Neither Vijay nor Rashmika said anything publicly. The rumours continued. Life went on.

Now, two years later, with the wedding festivities already underway in Udaipur and the couple having officially named their ceremony “The Wedding of VIROSH,” that old clip has come back around, and what once looked like a co-star playfully embarrassing a colleague now reads as something else entirely. It reads like the moment the story was almost told, by someone who had no reason to stay quiet about it.

That was 2023. A year later, a different co-star found himself in a similar position, except this time, Rashmika was the one who let something slip.

At the launch event of the Pushpa 2 song Kissik in November 2024, a host asked Rashmika on stage whether she would marry someone from the film industry or from outside it. She did not deflect. “Everyone knows about it,” she said, to immediate cheers from the audience. Allu Arjun, sitting right beside her, laughed out loud. Rashmika smiled and added, “I know what answer you want, I know it well. But let’s not delve into that right now.” Nobody in that room was confused about who she meant.

Around the same time, Vijay was doing his own version of almost-confirming. In an interview with Curly Tales, he was asked directly about his relationship status. “I am 35 years old, you think I will be single?” he replied. When asked if he had dated a co-star, he said, “I have. We all have to get married at some point unless it’s a choice not to.” He did not name Rashmika. He did not need to.