David Dhawan defends Govinda over arriving late: He completes his work and leaves

David Dhawan defended Govinda over arriving late on set. He recalled his working experience with the actor and praised his work ethic.

Director David Dhawan spoke about the rumours of actor Govinda's late arrival on film sets. He recalled his working experience with the actor and praised him for his dedication and sincerity on set.

In the finale of The Great Indian Kapil Show Season 4, David clarified allegations about Govinda's lack of punctuality. He said, "Here I want to tell you, log bolte hain na late aata hai sets par, aaj kaun nahi late aata hai? Woh aata hai, apna kaam khatam kar ke jaata hai. (People say that he comes late to the sets, but tell me, who doesn’t arrive late these days? He comes, completes his work, and then leaves)."

The 74-year-old recounted a specific moment from his 2007 film, Partner, when Govinda tackled a dense, four-page scene. After a quick review, the actor delivered a perfect performance in a single take, giving David full freedom to cut the footage as he saw fit. He was left surprised by Govinda’s remarkable skill and the physical agility he displayed throughout the sequence.

"And you will not believe it. He would show up and ask for his scene. It would be a four-page scene. He would go through it thoroughly while I was setting up the shot. He said, 'Don’t set it up yet. Do one thing. Here’s the scene. Watch me perform. I’ll do it in one take'. This was in Partner. He did all kinds of acrobatics in that scene; you can’t imagine. Then he told me to edit the scene however I wanted. Unbelievable. Govinda is incredible," he added.

Govinda and David have also collaborated together in films such as Coolie No 1 (1995), Saajan Chale Sasural (1996), Deewana Mastana (1997) and Hero No 1 (1997). Govinda's last theatrical release was Rangeela Raja (2019).

David's next directorial, Hai Jawani Toh Ishq Hona Hai features his actor-son Varun Dhawan, Mrunal Thakur and Pooja Hegde in crucial roles. The film is set to rlease on June 12, 2026.