In August 2023, Don 3 was officially announced by Excel Entertainment, introducing Ranveer Singh as the new face of the iconic franchise. This was followed by a spectacular announcement video, which generated huge excitement. The action spectacle was scheduled to go on floors in 2026.
Inside the explosive Don 3 meet: What really happened behind closed doors when Ritesh Sidhwani-Farhan Akhtar went head-to-head with Ranveer over money. 40 crores
However, some time back, it was revealed that Ranveer Singh has walked out of the project, sparking heated discussions in the industry. IHNS It is now learned that this resulted in two closed-door meetings being held under the auspices of the Producers Guild of India (GUILD), which were attended by some of the most powerful names in the business.
The first meeting took place about a week before the latest developments and was organized under the banner of the Producers Guild of India. Senior producers including Sajid Nadiadwala were present. This initial discussion focused on understanding the circumstances surrounding Ranveer Singh’s exit and the wider ramifications for producers when a film fails in the advanced pre-production stage.
The matter escalated further on Saturday, 7 February, when a second, more elaborate meeting was held at Land’s End under the auspices of the Producers Guild of India. The meeting was attended by other key industry stakeholders including Aamir Khan, Siddharth Roy Kapur, Ramesh Taurani and Kumar Taurani. Farhan Akhtar and Ritesh Sidhwani represented Excel Entertainment and formally raised their concerns with the guild members.
A source told IHNS, “From the beginning, it was made clear that the intention was not to single out or blame any individual. The discussion revolved around a larger industry issue; what are the options a filmmaker has after investing substantial money in the pre-production of a film when a lead actor walks out of the project. The stakeholders also examined the issue from the actor’s perspective and deliberated on safety measures that producers can take in such situations in the future. ”
In the second meeting, Ranveer’s side was put forward first. “Ranveer accused Excel Entertainment of unprofessionalism and not being serious about taking Don 3 on the floors. He said Farhan Akhtar never had a fixed script and as an actor, he only likes to work with fully developed material,” said a producer present at the meeting on condition of anonymity. The source further added, “Ranveer also revealed that Farhan was never open to feedback on the script and had issues incorporating certain subplots. He further alleged that Excel was exploring the possibility of bringing Hrithik Roshan on board and it was only after the success of Dhurandhar that they approached him again to cash in on his momentum.”
According to Ranveer’s camp, the actor faced indecision for almost three years, claiming that Farhan focused on multiple commitments, including his acting career, while Don 3 remained creatively underdeveloped. He reportedly felt that the script did not match the stature he had promised when he signed.
Soon after, Farhan Akhtar and Ritesh Sidhwani presented their version of events. A source from the venue shared IHNS“Farhan highlighted the issues of Ranveer’s temperament and demands. Ranveer insisted on seven vanity vans, two of which were exclusively for his staff. He also wanted a DJ on the set every day, who would charge heavily to play music of his choice.”
The source further added, “Ranveer wanted Excel to bear the expenses of his extended staff of around 28 people during the entire shoot. These demands were made even before the release of Dhurandhar and increased further after its historic success.” Farhan also submitted documents to refute claims of alleged script dissatisfaction. “Farhan said that Ranveer never raised any script-related issues. In fact, he was excited to portray the third generation of Don after Amitabh Bachchan and Shah Rukh Khan. He claimed that the script was shared at regular intervals and was approved by Ranveer at every stage.”
Excel Entertainment informed the guild that Ranveer’s exit resulted in a loss of approximately Rs. 40 crores, despite the producers agreeing to many of their demands. Farhan and Riteish are now adamant on demanding reimbursement and have urged producers’ bodies to prepare a resolution against the star’s unreasonable demands.
On the other hand, Ranveer Singh is said to be quite upset with how a potential franchise like Don 3 was handled. According to his camp, the exit was due to creative dissatisfaction and concerns of rampant chaos on the sets that had led to the project moving forward.
“It’s a war between the two parties, as Farhan and Ritesh are adamant on recovering their losses from Ritesh Sidhwani. They have also urged the guild to make a resolution against the unreasonable demands of Ranveer and other actors. Ranveer, on the other hand, is upset at how carelessly a potential cash cow like Don was treated by the stakeholders, and he left the project due to the banner’s inability to deal with a mega-film like Don 3. If earlier “Even if there were problems before the film went on the floors, he can’t even imagine the madness of unprofessionalism on the sets of Excel. He left the film for his sanity, even if there were problems before the film went on the floors, he couldn’t imagine the level of unprofessionalism once the shooting started,” a source summed up. IHNS.
Much more was said behind closed doors and tempers were clearly running high. For now, the industry is keeping a close eye on this as the standoff between Ranveer Singh and Excel Entertainment threatens to escalate in the coming days.
