While Aditya Dhar’s Dhurandhar: The Revenge is shattering records with its box office performance, the film has found itself in the middle of controversies. Regarding a scene featuring R Madhavan, a Shiv Sena leader reportedly filed a complaint objecting to a sequence where Madhavan’s character, Ajay Sanyal, is seen smoking while reciting a verse from the sacred Dasam Granth. The objection centred on the perceived disrespect towards Guru Gobind Singh and Gurbani, which many consider deeply sacred. The issue has sparked strong reactions, with claims that the depiction has hurt Sikh religious sentiments. As the conversation gathered pace online, R Madhavan addressed the concern directly, choosing to respond through a video message.
R Madhavan responds to Dhurandhar 2 controversy
R Madhavan addressed the clip by thanking fans first, and then expressing gratitude, stating, “Dhurandhar ke pure parivaar ke ore se, aap sabka bahut dhanyavaad humein itna pyaar dene ke liye. Haali mein humko pata chala hai ki kuch logon ko iss baat se takleef hui hai ki iss film ke ek scene mein, Guru Gobind Singh ke Dasam Granth se kuch lines bolte waqt maine cigarette smoke ki hai aur isse unko thes pahunchi hai. Main aapko yakeen dilata hoon yeh bilkul sahi nahi hai. (On behalf of Dhurandhar’s entire family, we extend our heartfelt thanks to all of you for showering us with so much love. Recently, we’ve learned that some people have been hurt by the fact that in one scene of this film, while reciting lines from Guru Gobind Singh’s Dasam Granth, I smoked a cigarette, and it pained them. I assure you, this is absolutely not right.)”
He continued, “Thodi galatfehmi hai. Mujhe pura yakeen hai, yeh scene se pehle, yeh line bolne se pehle Aditya Dhar ji ne-jo mujhse zyada dhyaan rakhte hain inn sab cheezon ka-mujhe bola tha ki yeh line bolne se pehle, usse bahut pehle aap cigarette bujha dijiyega. Aur na aapke mooh se dhuaan niklega, na hi screen pe kahin dhuaan hoga, nahi aapke haath mein cigarette hogi. Kyunki yeh humaare liye bahut hi pavitra aur paak hai. (There’s a slight misunderstanding. I am absolutely certain that before this scene, before saying this line, Aditya Dhar ji—who pays more attention to all these things than I do—told me to put out the cigarette well before delivering this line. So, no smoke would come out of your mouth, nor would there be any smoke on screen, and you wouldn’t have a cigarette in your hand. Because this is extremely sacred and pure for us.)”
“Toh maine bakayda cigarette bujha diya tha. Aur agar aap scene dekhenge, aapko dikhega nahi ki mere mooh se dhuaan nikal rahi hai, nahi frame mein kahin dhuaan hai, nahi woh scene end hone tak dhuaan ka naamo-nishaan kahin pe hai. Kyunki yeh humein pata hai, hum kisi ka dil dukhaana nahi chahte. Hum pure Sikh community ke saath hain. Aur hum unka bahut aadar karte hain. Main apne har film release ke pehle Golden Temple jaata hoon, yeh sabko pata hai. Humara yakeen maniye. (“So, I had properly extinguished the cigarette. And if you watch the scene, you won’t see any smoke coming out of my mouth, nor is there smoke anywhere in the frame, nor is there any trace of smoke until the end of that scene. Because we know this – we don’t want to hurt anyone’s feelings. We stand with the entire Sikh community. And we respect them a lot. I go to the Golden Temple before every film release of mine; everyone knows this. Please trust our belief),” added R Madhavan.
Where did the Dhurandhar 2 controversy stem from?
According to a report by Moneycontrol, a formal complaint has been lodged at Mumbai’s Mulund Police Station by Gurjeet Singh Kher, a Shiv Sena (Shinde faction) leader and president of the organisation Sikhs in Maharashtra. He also shared a detailed note on Instagram, criticising the makers for what he described as a serious lapse.
He wrote, “I strongly condemn the blatant disrespect shown towards Gurbani by the makers of Dhurandhar 2. Portraying a character @actormaddy talking to @ranveersingh while smoking a cigarette and reciting sacred Gurbani ‘Siraso pehchaniye jo Lade Deen ke Heth’ is deeply hurtful and unacceptable.” The post continued, “Gurbani is not mere dialogue-it is divine, sacred, and holds immense spiritual significance for the Sikh community. Such irresponsible depiction reflects ignorance and a lack of sensitivity towards our faith.”
“I urge the entire Sikh community to stand united and peacefully protest this insult. Show black flags to those responsible-Aditya Dhar, R Madhavan, and Ranveer Singh-wherever they appear, if they fail to issue a sincere apology to the SGPC and the Sikh community,” concluded the post.
Kher also underlined the historical importance of the verse attributed to Guru Gobind Singh, noting that it was written during a period of persecution under Mughal emperor Aurangzeb. He further demanded an apology from Aditya Dhar, R Madhavan, and Ranveer Singh, saying, “Apologise immediately, or history has shown what the Sikh community is capable of.”
Several fans and social media users reacted to Madhavan’s video, commenting in favour of it. Dhurandhar: The Revenge stars Ranveer Singh, R Madhavan, Arjun Rampal, Rakesh Bedi, Danish Pandor and Sara Arjun in key roles.
Also read: Dhurandhar 2 Box Office Day 6: Ranveer Singh’s film inches towards Rs 600 cr in India, as per early estimates
