Mumbai, 25 May

Bollywood veteran Paresh Rawal on Sunday said he has responded to the lawsuit filed by ‘Hera Pheri’ co-star Akshay Kumar over his sudden exit from the franchise's third instalment.

Rawal's sudden departure from the project sent shockwaves in the film industry and among the fans of the franchise who have been waiting for the third part for close to 20 years.

Kumar, who also serves as a producer on ‘Hera Pheri 3’, has sued Rawal, demanding Rs 25 crore in damages.

  In a post on X, Rawal broke his silence over the controversy and said his lawyer has responded to the legal suit.

"My lawyer, Ameet Naik, has sent an appropriate response regarding my rightful termination and exit. Once they read my response all issues will be laid to rest," wrote the 69-year-old actor, who essayed the fan-favourite role of Baburao Ganpatrao Apte.

‘Hera Pheri 3’ was set to reunite the veteran actor with Kumar and Suniel Shetty. Filmmaker Priyadarshan, who directed the original film in 2000, was also slated to return.

A lawyer representing Akshay Kumar's Cape of Good Films recently stated that Rawal's decision to exit the project could lead to "severe legal consequences".

"I think there will be severe legal consequences. It's of course hurt the franchise. We have written to him letting him know that there are a lot of legal consequences involved.

"There have been expenses incurred towards the cast, towards the crew, towards leading senior actors, logistics equipment, shooting of the trailer," Pooja Tidke, Joint Managing Partner of Parinam Law Associate, which represents Kumar's banner, told PTI.

She said Rawal had clearly indicated his involvement in the project through a social media post in January.

"Thereafter there were contracts entered into the shooting for the trailer. In fact, there was some portion of about three-and-a-half-minutes of the film itself that had been shot.

"Suddenly, a few days ago, we received a notice from Paresh ji saying that he is no longer associated with the film and doesn't want to be associated with the film. So it's taken everybody by shock and surprise of course," she said.