In August 2023, Excel Entertainment officially announced Don 3, with Ranveer Singh as the new face of the famous franchise. A short, slick video was released, creating a lot of buzz and excitement. The film was planned to start production in 2026.
Some time ago, it was revealed that Ranveer Singh had left the project, sparking a lot of talk in the industry.
Bollywood Hungama has now learned that the fallout led to two private meetings held under the guidance of the Producers Guild of India (GUILD), involving some of the biggest names in the business.
The first meeting happened a week before the latest events and was organized by the Producers Guild of India.
Senior producers, including Sajid Nadiadwala, were present. This meeting focused on understanding why Ranveer left and how such a situation affects producers when a film fails during the pre-production stage.
The situation worsened on Saturday, February 7, when a second more detailed meeting took place at Lands End, again under the guidance of the Producers Guild of India.
Aamir Khan, Siddharth Roy Kapur, Ramesh Taurani and Kumar Taurani, among others, were present. Farhan Akhtar and Ritesh Sidhwani, representing Excel Entertainment, shared their concerns with the Guild members.
A source told Bollywood Hungama, “It was clear from the start that the aim was not to blame or single out any individual.
The conversation was about a bigger issue in the industry—what a filmmaker can do when a film’s main actor leaves after a lot of money has been spent on pre-production. The discussion also looked at things from the actor’s point of view and considered ways producers could prevent such situations in the future.”
At the second meeting, Ranveer’s side was presented first.
A producer, speaking on condition of anonymity, revealed, “Ranveer blamed Excel Entertainment for being unprofessional and not serious about making Don 3. He said that Farhan Akhtar didn’t have a clear script and that as an actor, he only works with fully developed material. He also said Farhan wasn’t open to feedback and had issues with certain storylines. He also claimed that Excel was thinking about getting Hrithik Roshan on board and only came back to him after his success with Dhurandhar to take advantage of his popularity.”
According to Ranveer’s team, the actor was stuck for almost three years with indecision, saying that Farhan was focused on other things like his acting career, while Don 3 wasn’t developing creatively.
He felt the script didn’t live up to the standards he was promised when he signed on.
Soon after, Farhan Akhtar and Ritesh Sidhwani shared their version of the story.
A source from the meeting told Bollywood Hungama, “Farhan pointed out issues with Ranveer’s attitude and demands. Ranveer wanted seven luxury vans, including two just for his staff. He also asked for a DJ on set every day, which came with a high fee to play music he liked.”
The source added, “Ranveer wanted Excel to pay for his large team of nearly 28 people throughout the shoot.
These demands were made even before Dhurandhar was released and got even more extreme after its success. Farhan also showed documentation to challenge the claims about the script. He said Ranveer never said anything about the script and was actually excited to play the third generation of Don after Amitabh Bachchan and Shah Rukh Khan. He claimed the script was shared regularly and approved by Ranveer at every stage.”
Excel Entertainment told the Guild that Ranveer’s exit cost them about Rs. 40 crore, despite the producers agreeing to several of his demands.
Farhan and Ritesh are now determined to get their money back and want the producers’ groups to create rules against what they see as unreasonable demands from stars.
On the other hand, Ranveer is reportedly very upset about how a potential big franchise like Don 3 was handled.
According to his team, the exit was due to creative differences and worries about the chaos that would have happened on set if the film had continued.
"It's a battle between the two sides, as Farhan and Ritesh are determined to get their losses from Ritesh Sidhwani.
They have also asked the Guild to make rules against the unreasonable demands of Ranveer and other actors. Ranveer is upset about how a potential money-maker like Don 3 was treated by the stakeholders and left the project because of the poor handling by the banner. He left for his own peace of mind. If there were problems even before the film started, he can't imagine the level of unprofessionalism if it had gone on set. He chose sanity over a compromised project," a source said to Bollywood Hungama.
A lot more was said behind closed doors, and emotions were high.
For now, the industry is watching closely as the conflict between Ranveer Singh and Excel Entertainment threatens to get worse in the coming days.
