Salman Khan NOT acting as mediator between Ranveer Singh and Farhan Akhtar: Report

Don 3 has become the project around which chatter continues to grow. The feud between Ranveer Singh and the film’s makers, Farhan Akhtar and Ritesh Sidhwani, continues to get bitter. Amid this, reports suggested that Salman Khan was playing peacemaker in the dispute. However, it has now been confirmed that Khan has not stepped in to mediate.

The Don 3 dispute began after Ranveer stepped out of the project at the last minute in December 2025, following the release of Dhurandhar.

Salman Khan is NOT playing a mediator: Source

Contrary to early reports, HT City has learnt that the Dabangg actor has not intervened in the feud that the entire industry is talking about.

Also Read: Don 3 controversy timeline: Ranveer Singh’s exit, Rs 40 crore demand and FWICE action - What went wrong ?

A source close to the development tells HT City, “The speculations of Salman Khan calling and acting as a mediator are not true. No such intervention has taken place.”

How delay happen for Don 3?

Ranveer Singh was announced as the lead of Don 3 in 2023 through a stylised teaser. However, the film saw multiple delays in the years that followed. Sources close to the matter maintain that the delays did not originate from Farhan Akhtar and producer Ritesh Sidhwani.

“Ranveer had come on board for the film and Farhan wanted to start it immediately after Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani (2023). However, Ranveer had given dates to Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Baiju Bawra and had already begun look preparations for the film. Post that, Prasanth Varma’s project gathered momentum and Don 3 was again pushed from the actor’s side,” says the source.

Also Read: Ranveer Singh did not respond to FWICE invitation to resolve Don 3 dispute, reveals federation chief advisor

Not Farhan Akhtar, but it was Ranveer Singh behind the delay

In 2023, Singh was announced as the lead of Don 3 with a teaser. While the movie saw multiple delays, Farhan Akhtar and producer Ritesh Sidhwani were not the reason; it was Singh’s busy schedule.

Farhan wanted to start the movie immediately after Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani in 2023. But by then, the actor had already given dates to Baiju Bawra.

“Ranveer had come on board for the film and Farhan wanted to start it immediately after Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani (2023). However, Ranveer had given dates to Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Baiju Bawra and had already begun look preparations for the film. Post that, Prasanth Varma’s project gathered momentum and Don 3 was again pushed from the actor’s side,” says the source.

Singh, whose career has taken a dip with back-to-back flops, chose to give Aditya Dhar’s Dhurandhar preference, which he thought would be more beneficial for his career.

“He felt that after a string of non-successful films, this particular project had the potential to elevate his standing with audiences and that his coming on board as Don after that would be better positioning for the franchise,” he said.

But things took an unexpected turn when Ranveer backed out of Don 3 on December 20, 2025, after Dhurandhar's release.

Also Read: Did Ranveer Singh offer a Pralay stake and return signing fees to settle Don 3 exit with Farhan Akhtar?

As per the source, “Once Dhurandhar picked up momentum, Ranveer backed out of Don 3 on December 20, 2025, just three weeks before the film was scheduled to go on floors.”

Coming back to Salman, on Friday, as per reports via Bollywood Hungama, the Dabangg actor has stepped in to resolve the dispute between the duo.

The same report suggests that the source has stated, "Salman Khan is fond of Ranveer Singh and is equally fond of the Akhtars too. He picked up the call from both the stakeholders and has asked them to resolve their issues without hurting the future of their respective projects.