It's a serious matter, to be handled by court: Akshay Kumar on Paresh Rawal's ‘Hera Pheri 3’ exit

Akshay Kumar addresses Paresh Rawal's exit from "Hera Pheri 3" controversy, emphasizing friendship and legal handling of the matter.

Bollywood star Akshay Kumar on Tuesday (May 27, 2025) said that the on-going controversy over the exit of his co-star Paresh Rawal from “Hera Pheri 3” is a “serious matter”, which is being “handled by the court”.

About two weeks ago, Rawal's sudden departure from the project sent shockwaves in the film industry and among the fans of the franchise who have been waiting for the third part for close to 20 years.

Kumar, who also serves as a producer on “Hera Pheri 3”, has sued Rawal, for ₹25 crore in damages.

At the trailer launch of the superstar’s upcoming film, “Housefull 5”, he was asked how fans are disappointed with the exit of Rawal from “Hera Pheri 3”, and have called the acclaimed actor, “foolish”, to which Kumar said it is “not right” to address his “good friend” Rawal as “foolish”.

“Using this kind of word for one of my co-star like a foolish word or something. I would not appreciate it, and that’s not right. I worked with him since the last 30-35 years, we are very good friends. He’s a great actor and I really admire him. Whatever it is (referring to controversy), I don't think this is a place where I'm going to talk about it because whatever has to happen, it's a very serious matter. It is a matter which is going to be handled by the court and things like that. So, I don't think I'm going to speak about it here,” he told reporters.

Also read | Paresh Rawal explains departure from ‘Hera Pheri 3’: I don’t feel like a part of it

Last week, Rawal broke his silence over the controversy and said his lawyer has responded to the legal suit.