Bollywood star Ranveer Singh has responded to the criticism for his imitation of Rishab Shetty’s performance in the movie Kantara: Chapter 1.The actor took to Instagram to apologise for his action.
Ranveer, while enacting divine possession at the International Film Festival of Goa (IFFI), referred to a deity as female ghost. People took to social media to slam the actor for hurting their sentiments.
Ranveer wrote that his mimicking wasn’t meant to hurt anyone’s sentiments. “My intention was to highlight Rishab’s performance in the film. Actor to actor, I know much it would take to perform that particular scene the way he did, for which he has my utmost admiration.”
The Dhurandhar actor added, “I have always deeply respected every culture, tradition and belief in our country. If I have hurt anyone’s sentiments, I sincerely apologise.”
What happened?
During the closing ceremony of IFFI 2025, Ranveer went on stage and mimicked Rishab’s performance in the climax of Kantara: Chapter 1. Ranveer called the revered daiva Chavundi as “female ghost”, and went on to ask the crowd if they wished to see him in Kantara 3.
Complaint against Ranveer
On December 01, 2025, the Hindu Janajagruti Samiti (HJS) submitted a complaint to police against actor Ranveer Singh for hurting religious sentiments.
“Ranveer Singh should issue a public apology and assure he would refrain from making such remarks or performances in the future,” the HJS said while appealing to its supporters to register their protest in a peaceful and lawful manner.
Meanwhile, Ranveer is awaiting the release of Dhurandhar, also starring Akshaye Khanna, Arjun Rampal, Sanjay Dutt and R Madhavan. The multi-starrer is helmed by Aditya Dhar and is set to release on December 05, 2025.
Published – December 02, 2025 12:49 pm IST
