Naga Chaitanya and Samantha took to social media on Saturday afternoon to issue a joint statement and announced that they are parting ways as husband and wife. The news of their divorce has come after rumours were rife over the past few days that not all was well between the two. Chaitanya made the announcement in an official note requesting fans to support them during the difficult time and asked for their privacy. He wrote, "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. Thank you for your support." Samantha too shared the same statement on her Instagram page.  

Rumours of divorce between Samantha and Naga Chaitanya first started when the former first dropped her surname 'Akkineni' from all her social media handles back in July. Both stars had remained silent all this time, with rumours also springing up recently stating that the actress will be shifting to Mumbai next. She addressed the rumour when a fan had asked her the question during an AMA session on Instagram. Samantha said, "I don’t know where this rumour started but just like a hundred other rumours, not true. Hyderabad is my home, will always be my home. Hyderabad is giving me everything and I will continue to live here very." Similarly, a video clip of Samantha had gone viral earlier this month when she shut down a reporter who asked her about the divorce from Naga Chaitanya. 

On the other hand, Naga Chaitanya had recently in an interview said that the gossip was hurting him. Speaking to Film Companion, the actor said, "Initially, yes, it was a little painful. I was like ‘why is entertainment heading this way?’ But after that, what I’ve learned is that in today’s age, news replaces news." He added, "It doesn’t stay in people’s minds for too long. The actual news, the news that matters will stay. But the superficial news, the news that is used to create TRPs, is forgotten. Once I made this observation, it stopped affecting me." Samantha and Chaitanya got married in 2017.