It seems Pradeep Ranganathan has unintentionally dropped Prabhas-Hanu Raghavapudi’s film title. During the Tamil audio launch of his upcoming film Dude, the actor-director casually mentioned that he had been shown clips from Prabhas’ next film, adding, “I do not know if I can say this. I was shown some clips from Prabhas’ film Fauji. It’s an upcoming film, you will all watch it.”

Realising what he might have just revealed, Pradeep quickly followed it up with, “Did I say it by mistake, sir? Was it not supposed to be told to the public? Sorry, sir.” But by then, the secret was out and Telugu cinema fans wasted no time flooding social media with excitement over the apparent confirmation of Fauji as the official title of Hanu Raghavapudi’s highly anticipated film with Prabhas.

While the makers have kept quiet about the title, reports suggest that around 60% of the shoot has already been completed. The team is reportedly moving at a steady pace, balancing Prabhas’ packed schedule as he simultaneously wraps up work on The Raja Saab. The production still has about 35 shooting days left, with promotions expected to begin only after The Raja Saab’s release to avoid overlap.

Fauji also marks the debut of Imanvi as the female lead and boasts a seasoned supporting cast that includes Mithun Chakraborty, Anupam Kher, and Jaya Prada in key roles. The music is by Vishal Chandrashekhar, whose score for Sita Ramam remains a fan favourite, while cinematography is handled by Sudeep Chatterjee and editing by Kotagiri Venkateswara Rao.

Backed by Mythri Movie Makers, Fauji is said to be mounted on a massive Rs 400-crore budget, making it one of Telugu cinema’s biggest productions yet. Meanwhile, Pradeep Ranganathan’s Dude is releasing on October 17, backed by Mythri Movie Makers. The film, also starring Mamitha Baiju and R. Sarathkumar, joins the busy festive box-office weekend that includes Telusu Kada, K-Ramp, and Mithra Mandali.