A quirky slip of the tongue between paparazzi and Rakul Preet Singh has turned into one of the most shared celebrity clips online this week. Photographers tried greeting her with her upcoming character's name instead of her own, fumbled the pronunciation badly, and ended up handing her the perfect moment for a warm, laughing correction that fans can't stop replaying.
The paparazzi mix-up
Rakul Preet Singh was spotted in the Andheri area of Mumbai on August 17. As soon as photographers noticed her, cameras started clicking, but instead of calling out her own name, they tried addressing her as Shurpanakha, the character she plays in Nitesh Tiwari's upcoming film Ramayana. The trouble was that they couldn't get the pronunciation right. Hearing their garbled attempt, Rakul burst out laughing and gently corrected them on the spot, telling them it was not "Suranpakha" but Shurpanakha. She stayed relaxed and kept chatting with the photographers even after the mix-up, and the whole exchange was caught on camera and quickly spread across social media.
Why the Shurpanakha role means so much to her
In Nitesh Tiwari's two-part film Ramayana, Rakul Preet Singh plays Shurpanakha, Ravana's sister, a character considered pivotal to the epic because her role is what sets the conflict between Ram and Ravana in motion. On August 3, replying to a fan's letter on X, Rakul had explained why she took on the part. She wrote that history usually remembers Shurpanakha for just one incident, even though the Ramayana holds far more layers to her character that rarely get shown on screen. According to her, it was precisely the strength of this character that convinced her to accept the role.
Ramayana's cast and release dates
Nitesh Tiwari's Ramayana stars Ranbir Kapoor as Lord Ram, while Sai Pallavi plays Sita. Yash takes on the role of Ravana, and Sunny Deol appears as Lord Hanuman. The film is being made in two parts. Ramayana: Part 1 is expected to release in cinemas around Diwali 2026, while the second installment, Ramayana: Part 2, is scheduled to arrive in theatres by Diwali 2027.
