Media365
The first half of 2026 was all about Ranveer Singh; it started with Dhurandhar: The Revenge’s massive success and concluded with the Don 3 controversy. The actor exited the project after being associated for over 3 years. According to reports, he backed out owing to creative and delay issues. While director Farhan Akhtar tried to resolve the matter and even took it to the respective film boards, Ranveer stayed firm on his decision.
After months, Farhan has reacted to the controversy and took a jibe at Singh, calling his exit a “pattern”.
In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Farhan celebrated the 25 years of Dil Chahta Hai, marking his directorial debut. He shared several anecdotes before the film went on the floor. He revealed Saif Ali Khan wanted to quit the film just days before the film was supposed to start filming. The actor’s dates were clashing with another film, and he was planning to back out despite everyone trying to convince him to stay.
“For me, it was just like my head was destroyed because it was… When we met him, when we got into it, there was nobody else who could’ve played that part. It was just impossible. It was a true heartbreak,” shared Farhan.
While speaking about Saif’s exit, Farhan laughingly added, “It (Dil Chahta Hai) was a month away from filming, which seems to be a pattern nowadays,” hinting at Ranveer’s exit from Don 3. Responding to the laugh, he said, “But, not just with me… things like this happen too.”
Don 3 was Farhan’s ambitious project on which he had been working for over 3 years. The film was scheduled to go on the floors in early 2026, but Ranveer backed out of the project citing a lack of a finalised script. Another report claimed that Ranveer learned that Farhan was exploring alternative casting options while he was still signed as a lead actor. This was all alleged during a meeting between Ranveer and Excel Entertainment under the aegis of the Producers Guild of India (GUILD).
For a brief period, Ranveer was also banned by the Federation of Western India Cine Employees (FWICE) until he decided to approach them personally on the matter. However, the board lifted the ban after a few days.
