Actor Paresh Rawal, who was all set to reprise his iconic role as Baburao Ganpatrao Apte in Hera Pheri 3, starring Akshay Kumar and Suniel Shetty, has confirmed his exit from the film. His departure comes just days after Suniel Shetty shared a major update, revealing that the teaser of Hera Pheri 3 is ready and will be unveiled ahead of the IPL 2025 finale.
A source told Bollywood Hungama, "There were creative differences between the makers and Paresh Rawal. As a result, the actor decided to step down from the film." Later, Paresh confirmed, saying, "Yes, it’s a fact.'
Soon after Paresh's exit was confirmed, netizens expressed their disappointment, with some already calling Hera Pheri 3 a 'disaster' without Baburao, while others declared, 'No Baburao, no Hera Pheri.'
The anticipation for Hera Pheri 3 has been high since its announcement. In April this year, Paresh Rawal hinted at the film’s release date by replying to a fan on X (formerly Twitter), who said, "We are waiting for Babu Bhai Mr. Teza."
To this, Rawal replied, “Soon soon ! Before the next monsoon !"
Hera Pheri was released in 2000, and was directed by Priyadarshan, the film also starred Tabu, Om Puri and Gulshan Grover in pivotal roles.
Later, in 2006, the sequel to Hera Pheri was released, titled Phir Hera Pheri, which once again starred the iconic trio—Akshay Kumar, Paresh Rawal, and Suniel Shetty—reprising their original roles. The film featured Rimi Sen and Bipasha Basu as the female leads and was directed by Neeraj Vora.
On the work front, Paresh was recently seen in Sarfira, which was released in 2024. The film also starred Akshay Kumar and Radhika Madan in the lead.
Sarfira is a remake of Sudha Kongara's acclaimed Tamil film Soorarai Pottru (2020), which was inspired by G. R. Gopinath’s memoir Simply Fly: A Deccan Odyssey.
