The 34-year-old actress was soon bombarded with questions by fans and the press both, but she evaded these questions, choosing to answer only what she wanted instead. When asked about dropping her last name, she said, “I don’t react to trolls, I ignore them. I can’t be cornered into responding, I will only respond when I want to.” In the same interview when she was asked about Naga Chaitanya, the actress who usually always gushed about her family gave straight-faced answers about being ‘happy for his Bollywood debut in Laal Singh Chaddha’.
Fans of the actress who are well-versed with the actress’ body language, at least her public persona, were taken aback and wondered if the rumours of their split were right all along. A video of the actress clapping back at a reporter in Tirupati also went viral when he questioned her about her marital status. “Gudilo aa, buddhi unda?” she said, flagging off several memes and more rumours that seemed to confirm their split. The actress had also recently gotten a puppy called Saasha, taken to sharing Bible and inspirational quotes with the hashtag #MyMommySaid and just seemingly in need of comfort despite being busy with numerous endorsement deals. She also announced that she will take a break from films now that she has wrapped up shooting for Shaakunthalam. What’s more, she stopped sharing any pictures of Naga Chaitanya.
Naga Chaitanya on the other hand remained mum all through, even when he interacted with the press while promoting Love Story. His PR team made it clear that personal questions will not be entertained and remained through his side to ensure questions remained only professional. The media that was used to a much freer Chay were surprised to see this kind of gatekeeping. His father, actor Nagarjuna, also avoided talking to the press despite a new season of Bigg Boss Telugu launching.
What’s more, during the release of Love Story recently, Samantha was absent all through. While she wished Nagarjuna on his birthday (and he didn’t respond) and wished Sai Pallavi all the best for the film (not mentioning Naga Chaitanya), fans were taking all these as signs that the couple is surely headed for divorce. She was also nowhere to be found in pictures taken on Nagarjuna’s birthday and at the dinner hosted by Akkineni family for Aamir Khan when he was in the city. Soon rumours kept surfacing that the couple will announce their divorce before their wedding anniversary on October 6 and 7. There were also speculation from hopeful fans that maybe Samantha is pregnant and that’s what they intended to announce.
On October 2, Samantha and Naga Chaitanya both took to social media to confirm their separation, sharing similar notes that read, “To all our well wishers. After much deliberation and thought Sam and I have decided to part ways as husband and wife to pursue our own paths. We are fortunate to have a friendship of over a decade that was the very core of our relationship which we believe will always hold a special bond between us. We request our fans, well wishers and the media to support us during this difficult time and give us the privacy we need to move on. Thanking you for your support.”
#ChaySam, as fans called them, announced their separation after tying the knot in 2017 with Hindu and Christian weddings in Goa. The couple fell in love in 2010 when they worked together in Gautam Vasudev Menon’s Ye Maaya Chesave. They were last seen together on-screen in Shiva Nirvana’s 2019 film Majili. The ex-couple had an on again off again relationship before they got engaged in January 29, 2017.
