Farhan Akhtar takes a swipe at Ranveer Singh over Don 3 exit: ‘Seems to be a pattern’

Ranveer Singh's exit from Don 3 ignited turmoil in Bollywood, leading to legal actions and public disputes. Farhan Akhtar has broken his silence on it.

Ranveer Singh's exit from Don 3 saw Bollywood divided, legal notices being sent and film body getting involved. While Farhan Akhtar and Ranveer remain at loggerheads regarding the matter, Farhan, in a recent interaction, seems to have taken a jibe at Ranveer Singh, calling his exit a 'pattern'.

Ranveer Singh and Farhan Akhtar are embroiled in a dispute over the film Don 3.

'Seems to be a pattern nowadays'

During an interaction with The Hollywood Reporter India on the occasion of 25 years of his directorial debut Dil Chahta Hai, Farhan was speaking about the film's lead actor Saif Ali Khan and how he wanted to quit the film just days before they were supposed to start filming.

Farhan shared that before the film's shooting began, Saif faced a date issue as the schedule of another film he was set to do shifted. Since Saif was in a difficult situation, he decided to leave Farhan's film despite everyone trying to convince him to stay. The director shared, “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.”

While speaking about Saif's exit, Farhan recalled Ranveer's exit from his film Don 3 just days before they were supposed to start shooting. Taking a playful jibe at the actor without naming him, he said, “It was a month away from filming, which seems to be a pattern nowadays.”

The interviewer laughed out loud after hearing the obvious dig at Ranveer. Farhan responded to the laugh and said, “But, not just with me…things like this happen too.”

About Ranveer's Don 3 exit

For the unversed, Ranveer chose to walk away from Don 3 days before filming was set to begin. In several reports, Ranveer's exit was cited as the actor blaming Farhan for approaching Hrithik Roshan for the role behind his back as his career struggled. However, when he got a major hit like Dhurandhar last December, Farhan decided to retain Ranveer Singh in the film.

Farhan refuted such claims. Ranveer reportedly offered to return the signing amount, but the makers demanded compensation of ₹45 crore for the pre-production losses incurred, as per reports.

Later, Farhan approached the Federation of Western India Cine Employees (FWICE) regarding the matter, and the film body announced a non-cooperation move against the actor over his decision to leave Don 3, only to later revoke the directive. They even clarified that Ranveer had not been banned. The actor also reportedly issued a legal notice to the film body after they had issued the directive. Ranveer has largely stayed silent on the matter and has communicated through his spokesperson.

The controversy surrounding Don 3 has continued to attract attention, particularly after the film's casting and production plans underwent changes. Farhan's latest remarks have now added another layer to the ongoing discussion, with his reference to a “pattern” being widely interpreted as a playful dig at Ranveer's decision to exit the project.