Ranveer Singh ban after Farhan Akhtar's Don 3 complaint: Tracing all that happened
Film body FWICE has banned Ranveer Singh after Farhan Akhtar complained about the actor's reported exit from Don 3. How did it all start, and what happened down the years?
Ranveer Singh was banned by the Federation of Western India Cine Employees (FWICE) on May 25, following a recent complaint filed by Don 3 director Farhan Akhtar, and his banner Excel Entertainment, alleging that the actor had abruptly walked out of the upcoming project.
Banning Singh, the Federation in its statement said: "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."
What the ban means for Ranveer Singh
First, a quick reckoner on what th actor stands to face. Officially, a FWICE ban is a non-cooperation directive, and it means all production houses, studios, music companies and event organisers are directed to cut professional ties with Ranveer Singh until further notice. The Federation can direct its massive workforce — including technicians, actors, singers, and daily-wage workers — to refuse to work with the concerned person.
Anyone within the industry violating the directive is liable to internal disciplinary action.
FWICE can also approach regulatory bodies like the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) or state authorities to halt the release or certification of projects involving the boycotted artist.
But beyond the ban, let us trace the roots of the issue, and how things reportedly went southwards between Ranveer Singh and Farhan Akhtar.
How it all started
Ranveer Singh was announced as the new Don for Farhan Akhtar and Ritesh Sidhwani's production, Don 3, in August 2023, and fans all over naturally sensed a generational shift. Shah Rukh Khan, who had played Don in two films of 2006 and 2011, would make way, and Ranveer would bring in new charisma to the role, many felt.
A lot, however, happened in less than three years since that announcement, leading up to the FWICE action. Even as the announcement went viral in 2023, social media turned into a battlefield. For SRK fans, he didn't merely play Don — he was Don. His suave dialogue delivery, easy swagger and magnetic screen presence had become defining traits of the character. Ranveer fans felt Don needed a Gen Z twist, and only their star could bring in the necessary rakish charm.
Pressure was clearly mounting. A lot of social media natter was stacked against the idea of dropping Shah Rukh Khan as the titular antihero of the franchise. Memes and trolling against Don 3 followed. The obvious comparisons with Shah Rukh Khan cropped up for Singh regularly, too.
Rumour mills also linked Hrithik Roshan to the project, though the actor quickly denied any such development. All such reactions did affect the momentum of the project.
Delays related to logistics
Then came the whispers that issues related to the logistics of filmmaking were coming in the way. According to a July 2025 report in Bollywood Hungama, Ranveer Singh required time for martial arts training. Farhan Akhtar being occupied with his acting project, 120 Bahadur, had also reportedly pushed the film back.
Shooting was meant to start in January 2026, with a release aimed for December this year. Clearly, that wasn't happening any more.
Rumours of creative differences surface
By December 2025, entertainment websites began reporting serious disagreements between Ranveer Singh and the makers of Don 3. Several reports suggested that Singh reportedly wanted changes in the script. He was not happy with the strong language in the dialogues, besides elements of violence and gore, a report in The Times of India from April 2026 suggested.
Dhurandhar impact?
By December-end last year, reports of Ranveer Singh's exit from Don 3 were all over the media and the industry grapevine. It was a little over a fortnight after Dhurandhar had released and started breaking records. Reddit discussions were rife on whether Dhurandhar's success influenced Ranveer's exit. The Aditya Dhar film, after all, also saw the actor engage in graphic violence and get into high-octane thriller mode as the Don films.
The makers were reportedly shocked by the actor's exit because substantial pre-production work was already over, and they had already started marketing the film as a Ranveer Singh vehicle.
Rs 45-crore compensation reports
Although neither Excel nor Singh have confirmed the development, reports have said the production house demanded a Rs 45-crore compensation from the actor over losses entailed owing to his walkout from the project. The alleged compensation has been linked to international location scouting, technical planning, pre-production expenses and delayed schedules.
Unconfirmed reports say that Ranveer Singh’s side argued there was no bound script for the film yet, so he should not be held responsible for the delays.
Who else has FWICE banned in the past?
Other notable artists to face the penalty in the past have been Diljit Dosanjh, Mika Singh and Gauahar Khan.
Dosanjh was given a non-cooperation directive for casting Pakistani actress Hania Aamir in his film Sardaar Ji 3, while Mika faced penalty for performing with his troupe at a private wedding in Karachi, Pakistan. Gauahar Khan faced a ban for flouting Covid-19 quarantine norms by going to a film set after testing positive.
A recent news item in Free Press Journal suggested that Ranveer Singh has decided to return the reported Rs 10 crore signing amount he had taken for Don 3. The move, if true, signals an attempt on the actor's part to end the ongoing fallout.
The decision to ban Singh could only be the start of a new chapter in the ongoing tension saga between him and Farhan Akhtar. Keep watching this space.