It’s been almost two years since Farhan Akhtar announced his return to direction with Don 3, the highly anticipated next chapter of one of Hindi cinema’s most memorable action franchises. The announcement, however, came with a decisive twist: Shah Rukh Khan would not be reprising the role. Instead, Don’s mantle would pass to Ranveer Singh. The response was relentless. Farhan, Ranveer and the film’s unit faced intense backlash online. From the beginning, the project seemed to be fighting an uphill battle, surrounded by sustained negativity and public skepticism.
Over the past two years, those early signs of turbulence have reportedly escalated into serious internal conflict. According to industry reports, Don 3 has been stalled after Ranveer decided to quit the franchise following the release and mammoth success of Dhurandhar. Things got worse earlier this week when Variety India reported that Farhan has allegedly demanded Rs 40 million in damages from Ranveer for abandoning the project just a few months before the scheduled inauguration date.
Ranveer Singh alleges lack of professionalism at Excel Entertainment
Now, a recent report by Bollywood Hungama offers detailed information about what has happened behind closed doors. According to the publication, the fallout led to two closed-door meetings held under the auspices of the Producers Guild of India, attended by some of the film industry’s most influential figures. The report quoted a source as saying, “From the beginning, it was clear that the intention was not to single out or blame any individual. The discussion revolved around a broader industry issue; what options does a filmmaker have after investing a substantial amount of money in the pre-production of a film when the lead actor leaves the project. Stakeholders also examined the issue from the actor’s point of view and deliberated on safeguards that producers can put in place to prevent such situations in the future.”
Ranveer Singh has alleged that for over three years, Farhan Akhtar remained focused on his acting career instead of actively and creatively developing Don 3.
Two meetings have been held so far. Several senior producers including Sajid Nadiadwala were present at the first meeting. This initial discussion focused on understanding the circumstances surrounding Ranveer’s exit and the broader implications for producers when a film collapses late in pre-production. The second meeting was more detailed and was attended by the likes of Aamir Khan, Siddharth Roy Kapur, Ramesh Taurani and Kumar Taurani, among other key industry stakeholders.
In this meeting, Ranveer’s position was presented first. The report quoted an anonymous producer who revealed, “Ranveer blamed Excel Entertainment for their lack of professionalism and not being serious about taking Don 3 on floors. He claimed that Farhan Akhtar never had a bound script and that as an actor, he prefers to work only with fully developed material.” The source further added, “Ranveer also pointed out that Farhan was never open to feedback on the script and had trouble incorporating certain subplots. He further alleged that Excel was exploring the possibility of bringing in Hrithik Roshan and only approached him again after the success of Dhurandhar, to capitalize on his momentum.”
The report further noted that the actor endured close to three years of uncertainty, during which he alleged that Farhan was busy with multiple professional commitments, including his acting duties, while Don 3 failed to progress creatively. Ranveer is said to have believed that the material ultimately fell short of the scale and size that had been assured to him at the time he came on board.
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Farhan Akhtar seeks Rs 40 crore compensation from Ranveer Singh
Farhan and Ritesh Sidhwani (co-founder of Excel Entertainment) were also present at the meetings and presented their side of the story. Farhan submitted documentation to counter claims of dissatisfaction with the script. The source was quoted as saying, “Farhan maintained that Ranveer never pointed out any issues with the script. In fact, he was keen on portraying the third generation Don after Amitabh Bachchan and Shah Rukh Khan. He claimed that the script was shared at regular intervals and approved by Ranveer at every stage.”
Excel Entertainment informed the Guild that Ranveer Singh’s exit resulted in losses of approximately Rs 40 million, despite producers agreeing to several of the actor’s demands. Farhan and Ritesh are reportedly adamant in seeking a refund and have urged producer bodies to formulate resolutions against what they describe as unreasonable demands from the stars. Ranveer, on the other hand, is said to be deeply upset at how a potential franchise juggernaut like Don 3 was handled.
Ranveer Singh also claimed that Farhan Akhtar was considering replacing him with Hrithik Roshan.
Summary with a mega movie like Don 3. If there were problems even before it was released, you can’t even think about the insanity of the lack of professionalism on the sets of Excel.”
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Amid so much uncertainty and unresolved disputes, it now seems unlikely that Don 3 will see the light of day anytime soon. Meanwhile, Ranveer is said to be wrapping up the remaining shoot of Dhurandhar 2, which is scheduled to release next month. After that, he will supposedly start filming Pralay, Touted as Bollywood’s first zombie apocalypse action film. Meanwhile, Farhan is said to be contemplating reviving Jee Le Zaraa, a project announced with Priyanka Chopra Jonas, Katrina Kaif and Alia Bhatt, which, like Don 3, was teased with much promise but is yet to move forward.