How ‘Don 3’ exit row got Ranveer Singh banned from FWICE: ‘The entire film industry…’- The Week

In a major escalation to the row over his exit from Farhan Akhtar’s Don 3Bollywood superstar Ranveer Singh has been officially banned by the Federation of Western India Cine Employees (FWICE).

The actor, who is fresh off the success of Dhurandhar 2was issued with a strict Non-Cooperation Directive (NCD)—which effectively instructs the industry not to work with him—until he resolves the dispute over the Rs 45 crore in damages incurred by the makers of Don 3.

The decision was announced in a press conference on Monday, a week after the film body took up the matter based on an official complaint from Farhan Akhtar and Ritesh Sidhwani, whose production studio, Excel Entertainment, is making the film.

“Sudden exits from projects by senior and established actors at crucial stages pose a serious threat to the stability and working ecology of the entertainment industry,” the film body said in its press release announcing the ban.

“FWICE firmly believes that the entire film industry functions as one extended family, where every individual associated with different crafts and departments contributes collectively towards the successful creation of a project,” it added.

The April exit row

The dispute over Don 3 reportedly dates back to mid-2024, when Ranveer’s Rocky and Rani’s love story did not end up becoming the blockbuster it was meant to be after his consecutive box office flops in Jayeshbhai Jordaar and Circus.

The social media backlash over the replacement of Shah Rukh Khan with Ranveer Singh as the lead actor for the third film in the Don franchise and alleged creative differences behind the scenes are also said to have caused uncertainty around the film’s production at the time.

While Ranveer waited for the go-ahead from Excel Entertainment for Don 3the uncertainty allegedly persisted, which finally led to him taking up Dhurandhar in the second half of 2024.

It was only after Dhurandhar became a massive success that Excel Entertainment suddenly broke the uncertainty and hyped up Don 3. However, by then, Ranveer allegedly was not convinced with the film, and decided to reject his lead role in the film in April 2026.

Going forward

In their complaint to FWICE, the Don 3 makers have alleged that all the pre-production costs that they had incurred till Ranveer’s exit 10 days before shooting—amounting to Rs 45 crore—had to be settled entirely by him.

The federation noted that after their notices to him, the Bollywood actor refused to discuss the matter with them, stating that the issue required an “appropriate” forum instead.

Despite the NCD in his name, FWICE has also signalled that it was open to resolving the dispute amicably.

It also used the issue to make a statement on honoring film contracts in order to run smoothly as an industry.