Pahlaj Nihalani also said that David Dhawan was responsible for creating misunderstandings between him and Govinda.
Former chairman of Central Board of Film Certification Pahlaj Nihalani has also produced multiple Bollywood films. His biggest Bollywoos hits were Shola Aur Shabnam and Aankhen, released in 1992 and 1993 respectively. Both the movies were directed by David Dhawan and starred Govinda in the leading role. Even after giving two blockbusters, Pahlaj didn’t work with Govinda for 19 years, untill Rangeela Raja released in 2019. Pahlaj and Dhawan have never collaborated again after Aankhen.
In a recent interview, the producer slammed the director and the actor both. He said that David was the responsible for creating misunderstandings between him and Govinda, and blamed the actor for destroying his film Rangeela Raja.
Talking to Bollywood Thikana, Pahlaj said, “David Dhawan created a misunderstanding. He felt that he alone was responsible for my hits, and when I started working with Anil Kapoor, he felt betrayed. So, he started backbiting about me to Govinda. He spread hate about me; actors would come and tell me what he was saying. We went our separate ways. Govinda even abandoned a film we were doing together because of what David said to him; we had already started shooting, I had to finish it with different actors.”
In 2018, finally Pahlaj and Govinda came together and made a comedy called Rangeela Raja, directed by Sikander Bharti. The film was scheduled to release on November 2018, along with Aamir Khan, Amitabh Bachchan, and Katrina Kaif-starrer Thugs of Hindostan, but was postponed at the last moment and finally hit theatrs in January 2019.
Pahlaj blames Govinda for this fiasco as he stated, “Rangeela Raja was a remake of a Rajinikanth film, and Govinda did a fabulous job in it. In my opinion, he did a better job than even Rajinikanth, and I was sure he’d win some awards. But just before the release, he went and started ‘rona-dhona’ in the press about being sidelined by the industry. He said Salman Khan and Shah Rukh Khan were responsible. At the last minute, my shows were cancelled. And look at him now, ghar pe baitha hai.”
After Rangeela Raja, Pahlaj Nihalani hasn’t produced any film and Govinda hasn’t acted in any film, as of today.
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