Overview
- A short clip that circulated on social media over Aug. 6–7 appears to show a blood-soaked Mahesh Babu in a ghat action sequence and the production has not confirmed whether the footage is authentic.
- Fans and organized fan pages have publicly urged people not to repost the material and to wait for official promotional assets to protect the filmmakers’ rollout.
- Director SS Rajamouli has said about 80% of Varanasi is shot, that the biggest action sequences are complete, and that key scenes are being filmed for IMAX with a worldwide release set for April 7, 2027.
- The film has suffered repeated unauthorised leaks before, including announcement glimpses, set photographs and character looks, making the latest clip part of a broader security concern for the production.
- The leak comes days before an industry-expected birthday reveal for Mahesh Babu and a reported 4K re-release of his film Dookudu, which could force the team to change its marketing timetable or tighten on-set security.