‘Dhurandhar’ Actor Rakesh Bedi Takes Cheeky Jibe At Yash’s 'Toxic' Delaying Release
Here's what 'Dhurandhar' actor Rakesh Bedi said about Yash's 'Toxic' delaying its release in cinemas.
‘Dhurandhar: The Revenge’ and ‘Toxic: A Fairy Tale for Grown-ups’ were set to provide the first high-profile box office clash of 2026 as far as Indian cinemas was concerned. However, it wasn't meant to be as 'Toxic', starring Yash in the lead role, delayed its release at the last minute, owing to the ongoing Middle East tensions. Since the Geetu Mohandas-directed film has postponed its release to June 4, Aditya Dhar's 'Dhurandhar 2' is all set to enjoy a solo release and wreak havoc at the ticket counters.
ALSO READ | ‘Toxic’ DELAYED: Yash Announces New Release Date Amid Middle East Tensions
Rakesh Bedi, who plays sly politician Jameel Jamali in the 'Dhurandhar' franchise, took a dig at the 'Toxic' makers, saying the Middle East tensions are there for their project as well, but they haven't pushed back the release and are sticking to the date mentioned earlier.
“Tension toh humare liye bhi hai Middle East main, par hum toh aa rahe hai (the tension exists for us, too, in the Middle East, but we will release our film),” Rakesh Bedi told India Today.
ALSO READ | Watch: Yash Goes All Out With Brutal Action In ‘Toxic’ Teaser As Fans Say “RIP To Dhurandhar 2”
Earlier, Pakistani politician Nabil Gabol had expressed his displeasure over Rakesh Bedi’s character Jameel Jamali in ‘Dhurandhar’. He claimed that Rakesh Bedi's Jamali resembles him.
Reacting to these claims, Rakesh Bedi said, “I didn’t portray him at all. I don’t understand why he is identifying himself with the character. I simply adopted a particular look for the role. Now if someone feels that my appearance resembles him, what can I really do about it? It’s not my fault. Perhaps because of the wig and styling he might feel there is a slight resemblance. That’s his interpretation. But there isn’t much we can do about that.”
“As far as the writers, directors and makers are concerned, we never once thought about portraying Nabil Gabol specifically. In fact, I created the character by blending traits from several Pakistani politicians, their speeches, their body language and the aspects that suited the role. I adapted those elements and then built the character from there. So, if Nabil Gabol alone feels the character represents him or chooses to see it that way then that’s really his own issue. I can’t help it,” he added.
Speaking about ‘Dhurandhar: The Revenge’, the film also stars Ranveer Singh, Arjun Rampal, Sara Arjun, Sanjay Dutt, Bedi and R Madhavan. The film is set to release in theatres on March 19, 2026. The advance booking for paid previews is going through the roof and the Aditya Dhar-directed project film has already sold 3,72,507 tickets, grossing Rs 19.69 crore.
It is worth mentioning that Dhurandhar's release was banned in the Gulf region and it's likely that the fate of the second instalment would be the same.
Returning to 'Toxic: A Fairytale for Grown ups', the film also stars Nayanthara, Kiara Advani, Tara Sutaria and Huma Qureshi. The film will now hit the theatres on June 4, 2026.
