Naga Chaitanya and Sobhita Dhulipala, who married on December 4, 2024, had faced intense online backlash soon after their intimate ceremony. A section of the internet accused Sobhita of being responsible for Chaitanya’s 2021 separation from Samantha Ruth Prabhu, to whom he was married from 2017 to 2021. As Naga Chaitanya and Sobhita Dhulipala clock their wedding anniversary, the conversation online has naturally circled back to the journey that led them here.
Chaitanya clarifies Sobhita had no role in his divorce from Samantha
In February this year, during his appearance on the Raw Talks With VK podcast, the Thandel actor set the record straight. He addressed the narrative surrounding Sobhita and insisted she had no connection to his past marriage.“I feel very bad for her (Sobhita). She doesn’t deserve it. She is not at fault in this matter. She came into my life… we met in a very organic way, beautiful way. Just like social media chat on Instagram, our friendship started and our relationship was slowly built from there,” he said.The actor emphasised that Sobhita had “not been connected to my past in any way at all.”
Naga Chaitanya calls Sobhita a ‘true hero’ for handling the scrutiny
Chaitanya praised his wife for the maturity with which she weathered the online chaos that followed their wedding.“I feel very bad for her but at the same time, I have to thank her very much. She’s very understanding and patient. With so much maturity she navigated through all this. She is, in fact, a true hero for me in so many ways. To face this is not easy,” he added.
On his separation from Samantha: ‘We wanted to go our own ways’
Speaking about his divorce from Samantha, Chaitanya said the two made the decision with mutual respect and clarity.“We wanted to go our own ways. For our own reasons, we have taken this decision and we respect each other. We are moving on in our lives, in our own way. What more explanation is needed, I don’t understand,” he said, urging the public and media to respect their privacy.He expressed disappointment that their separation had become “a headline… a topic or gossip… entertainment,” but stressed that both he and Samantha had handled it with grace.“I’ve moved on with so much grace. She has moved on with so much grace. We are leading our own lives. I have found love again. I am so happy and we have so much respect for each other,” he shared, adding that it was unfair for him to be “treated like a criminal.”
‘It was a conscious, mutual decision,’ actor reflects on divorce
Chaitanya also revealed that the choice to end the marriage was deeply considered, shaped by his own experiences growing up in a broken family.“It was for the betterment of whoever was involved in the marriage… Whatever the decision was, it was a very conscious decision after much thought and with a lot of respect for the other person… I will think 1000 times before breaking a relationship because I know the repercussions… It was a mutual decision,” he said.He admitted the emotional weight of the situation but remained optimistic, “I feel bad that it happened but everything happens for a reason… You build yourself, you keep progressing and you will find the right path soon. That’s happened to me.”
Samantha also began a new chapter, marrying filmmaker Raj Nidimoru
Samantha Ruth Prabhu, too, has moved forward in her personal life. On December 1, 2025, she married filmmaker Raj Nidimoru in a traditional Bhuta Shuddhi Vivaha ceremony at the Linga Bhairavi Temple in Coimbatore. The intimate wedding was attended by just 30 close friends and family members. Raj was earlier married to Shhyamali De, with reports of a separation in 2022.
