Top News

Firoz Nadiadwala insulted me: Priyadarshan on 'Hera Pheri 3' fallout
03 Jul 2026

Filmmaker Priyadarshan has opened up about his exit from the much-anticipated third installment of the Hera Pheri franchise.

The news was confirmed by producer Firoz Nadiadwala recently, who said that Priyadarshan would no longer be directing the Akshay Kumar, Suniel Shetty, and Paresh Rawal-starrer.

The veteran director soon confirmed the same.

Now, in an interview with mid-day, Priyadarshan has revealed that he left due to legal issues and disagreements with Nadiadwala.

'Firoz told Akshay never make it with Priyadarshan'
Disagreements

Priyadarshan revealed that Nadiadwala had made several insulting comments about his work.

"Firoz told Akshay, 'You have the rights to make Hera Pheri 3, but never make it with Priyadarshan. That's my only request.' He has insulted me so many times - he told me that my cut of Hera Pheri [2000] looked like a poor man's version, that he had to edit my five-hour movie."

Priyadarshan was excited to direct 'Hera Pheri 3'
Ambitions

Despite the disagreements, Priyadarshan was initially excited about directing Hera Pheri 3.

He said, "I initially agreed to do the third part with Akshay because I thought I could make one of this country's biggest franchises."

"If I had directed it, I could've made it bigger than Dhurandhar. Akshay, Suniel, and Paresh requested me to make Hera Pheri 3. When I narrated the story to them, they were all excited."

Priyadarshan was approached by another producer last year
Violation

Priyadarshan told the portal how Seven Arts Films's GP Vijayakumar had called him last year when the third installment was first announced.

Vijayakumar informed him that the rights to the franchise remained with him, so he could not make the film.

"According to me, Hera Pheri [2000] was born, Hera Pheri 2 [2006] became sick, and Hera Pheri 3 will be dead," Priyadarshan noted of the legal troubles.

What are the legal issues surrounding 'Hera Pheri 3'?
Uncertainty

Notably, Vijayakumar, a South Indian film producer, questioned Nadiadwala's right to sell the Hindi franchise's rights to Kumar.

This is because in 2022, he had bought the entire franchise's rights from Adithya Films, the makers of the Malayalam film Ramjirao Speaking (1989), which was the basis of Hera Pheri.

According to Vijayakumar, Nadiadwala had simply bought the remake rights to the first film, and flouted rules by making a sequel.