Last week, fans were shocked when actor Paresh Rawal confirmed he had stepped away from ‘Hera Pheri 3’. The third part of the beloved comedy franchise, starring Akshay Kumar, Suniel Shetty and Rawal, has been in the works for a while and is one of Bollywood’s most anticipated movies. What made things even more dramatic was a legal notice sent to Rawal by Akshay Kumar’s production house soon after he confirmed his exit.But the writing may have been on the wall for a while. Earlier this year, Paresh Rawal had spoken openly about his disappointment with ‘Phir Hera Pheri’, the second film in the franchise, and why he felt the magic of the first film was lost.Paresh Rawal’s Honest Words About ‘Phir Hera Pheri’In February 2025, Paresh Rawal spoke openly in an interview with Siddharth Kannan. He talked about ‘Phir Hera Pheri’ just as talks about the third film were starting.He said, “Everybody was overconfident about the film. It lost its innocence. Sorry to say, but wo film nahi bani thi barabar (the film wasn’t that good). I would tell Neeraj Vohra (director), tu bhar raha hai ismein (you’re overstuffing this film with sequences), it isn’t required. I asked him to keep the simplicity that was there in the first film. It will get messy if you overfill the film. People will laugh at anything; they will laugh if somebody is running naked, but we don’t have to run naked. The sense of proportion should be on you.”‘Not just about making money’Paresh Rawal also spoke about how sequels should be made with care, not just for box office success. He said, “If you’re making a sequel just to mint money, that isn’t fun. You have a character like Baburao, which has a goodwill of Rs 500 crore. You put that character in another backdrop. If you only change the jokes, what’s the meaning of that?”Exit from ‘Hera Pheri 3’When news broke that Rawal had quit ‘Hera Pheri 3’, many assumed there had been creative differences. But the actor quickly cleared the air and put the rumours to rest. “I wish to put it on record that my decision to step away from Hera Pheri 3 was not due to creative differences. I REITERATE THAT THERE ARE NO CREATIVE DISAGREEMENT WITH THE FILM MAKER. I hold immense love, respect, and faith in Mr. Priyadarshan the film director.”
