Shobhaa De says ‘ban’ on Ranveer Singh in Don 3 row is part of ‘ugly conspiracy’ against Aditya Dhar and Dhurandhar

THe dramatic event surrounding Ranveer Singh’s sudden leave from father 3 shows no signs of slowing land, with the Federation of western sandwich India Cine Employees (FWICE) tightening its stand against the actor. Now, author and columnist Shobhaa De has claimed that she senses an “ugly conspiracy” brewing against Ranveer and Dhurandhar director Aditya Dhar under the veil of the ongoing Don 3 dispute.Shobhaa De on Don 3 disputeOn Thursday, Shobhaa took to Instagram to praise Ranveer for the way he has been handling the ongoing dispute. She also claimed that the recent move by the film body appeared to be part of an “ugly conspiracy” targeting not just Ranveer, but also filmmaker Aditya Dhar and the team behind his blockbuster spy-thriller franchise Dhurandhar.Shobhaa De posted a video about the issue with a caption that read, “Ranveer Singh is the Delhi Gymkhana of Bollywood.....same same but different… Exclusivity instead of inclusivity? Stop behaving like Trump!!! Threats and intimidation???? Won't work. Never have. Regardless who the players are…”In the video, Shobhaa is seen drawing parallels between Ranveer’s ongoing Don 3 controversy and the Delhi Gymkhana Club row, saying, “I've been following the Ranveer Singh thing. I've been following the Delhi Gymkhana thing. There's not that much of a difference… Ranveer Singh is like the Delhi Gymkhana in many ways of Bollywood.”She continued, “What is the whole thing about? It's about power. It's about control. It's about banning. It's about taking away. It's about putting people in their place. It's about teaching lessons to people or institutions which maybe has a sense of over-privilege or taking advantage of a certain position without going into the legalities of it.”The Gymkhana Club, a private club founded during British colonial rule, has been ordered by the government to vacate the prime New Delhi site it has occupied for more than a century. This has triggered a legal battle and debate over elite privilege. The Centre has asked Delhi Gymkhana Club to vacate its premises on Safdarjung Road, stating that the land near key government and defence establishments in Lutyens’ Delhi is needed for “strengthening and securing defence infrastructure” and other public security requirements.“Ranveer Singh is sensible, clever, and well-advised. He's holding his silence. He's keeping quiet, letting his fans and followers fight his battles for him. The Delhi Gymkhana is full of stuffed old shirts sitting and sipping their gin and tonics and keeping the rest of the world out. It's a different story. They are taking on the government. Now, two different news stories, but with a lot of similarities,” she mentioned.Shobhaa mentions that FWICE has suddenly gained importance by saying that they won’t “allow this superstar and the most successful actor in India, to get to the studios and do his work”. She added that in the process, they are making themselves deeply unpopular among technicians and several others who stand to lose their jobs through no fault of their own.“If it had to be resolved between Excel, Farhan Akhtar and Ranveer Singh, they could have hired lawyers and gone to court, but not involved whoever these people are… What is happening is something very ugly,” she added. Shobhaa senses a conspiracyIn fact, Shobhaa claimed she can sense a conspiracy brewing against Ranveer and filmmaker Aditya Dhar following the massive success of the Dhurandhar franchise.She mentioned, “In Ranveer’s case, he is an iconic movie star. He's a phenomenon. And his stupendous success, which has to be credited to his director, producer of Dhurandhar, it seems to be a conspiracy not just against one star, that's Ranveer Singh, but against everyone involved with Dhurandhar, in particular, the director and producer.”“Now, is Dhar such a huge threat to the vested interests in Bollywood? It would appear that way. But in the bargain, what they've done, and what Ranveer has successfully done by keeping quiet, is enhance his own brand appeal and also his popularity. So who's going to win this round? Let's wait and see,” Shobhaa added.She concluded the video by asking Farhan to take the dispute to a court and “let the law decide who has transgressed what, because for the average person that is not clear at all”.About Ranveer Singh’s Don 3 disputeAfter Shah Rukh Khan headlined Farhan’s Don (2006) and Don 2 (2011), it was announced in 2023 that Ranveer would headline Don 3. Reports of a dispute between Ranveer, Farhan and Ritesh Sidhwani of Excel Entertainment surfaced in December 2025 when the actor is said to have walked out of the film abruptly after the success of his Dhurandhar with filmmaker Aditya Dhar. Last month, Farhan approached the FWICE, claiming Ranveer's exit from the film had caused him monetary losses amounting to ₹45 crore. There was also talk of Farhan replacing Ranveer with Hrithik Roshan, which the actor later dismissed.On Monday, the FWICE issued a non-cooperation directive against Ranveer after Farhan Akhtar approached them regarding the Don 3 dispute in April.Following this, Ranveer’s spokesperson issued a statement addressing the dispute on his behalf. It read, “Ranveer Singh holds the highest regard for the film fraternity and for everyone associated with the Don franchise. Throughout the recent developments surrounding Don 3, he has consciously chosen to maintain silence, believing that professional discussions and personal equations are best handled with dignity, maturity and mutual respect.” The spokesperson further added that Ranveer does not wish to comment on the matter any further.