Bollywood superstar Ranveer Singh is currently the biggest topic of discussion in the film corridors and on social media. This happened when ‘Federation of Western India Cine Employees’ (FWICE) issued a ‘Non-Cooperation Directive’ i.e. an indefinite ban against Ranveer after the complaint of veteran filmmaker Farhan Akhtar. Farhan Akhtar alleges that Ranveer Singh left the film just a few days before the shooting of his much-awaited film ‘Don 3’ started, causing huge financial loss to the makers.
The decision, which comes so soon after the success of Ranveer Singh’s recent blockbuster films, has left fans stunned. Now questions are being raised on the validity of this monopoly and ban of FWICE on social media. Many legal and film experts argue that this is a clear violation of any artiste’s ‘fundamental right to livelihood’.
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Ranveer Singh’s case may be the most high-profile at the moment, but this is not the first case of FWICE banning artists. In the last few years, the Federation has cracked the whip of ‘non-cooperation’ on many big stars citing national security, discipline and pandemic rules. Let us take a look at such major cases:
Whom did FWICE ban recently and why?
FWICE has called for boycott of Bollywood thrice in recent times. The reasons for this include the artist concerned working with Pakistani citizens, performing in Pakistan, and violating the rules related to the epidemic. Read further for complete information.
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Diljit Dosanjh (2025)
Before Ranveer Singh, the most recent case was related to actor-singer Diljit Dosanjh. FWICE’s decision to issue ‘non-cooperation’ direction against Dosanjh came last year. At that time the Federation had appealed to all Indian artistes not to work with Pakistani nationals, despite this, Pakistani actress Hania Aamir was cast as one of the lead female characters in Dosanjh’s comedy film ‘Sardarji 3’. Apart from playing the lead role in the film, Dosanjh was also credited as a co-producer of the film.
‘Sardaarji 3’ did not release in India, but it did good business in markets across the world. The film grossed over Rs 70 crore and set a new record for overseas earnings for the Punjabi film industry.
Meanwhile, FWICE asked its nearly five lakh members in Mumbai not to be associated with any of Diljit Dosanjh’s projects. The special thing is that the Federation had also written a letter to T-Series, requesting them to remove Dosanjh from their co-production film ‘Border 2’. However, after the intervention of Bhushan Kumar, Chairman and Managing Director of T-Series, Dosanjh got permission to continue shooting for the war drama.
Although FWICE Chief Advisor Ashok Pandit said that the ‘non-cooperation’ directive against Dosanjh is still in force, the actor went ahead and meanwhile completed the shooting of Imtiaz Ali’s film ‘Main Vaapas Aaunga’. The film is scheduled to release on June 12, 2026.
Mika in 2019
Pop star and playback singer Mika Singh was boycotted by FWICE in 2019. This decision of the Federation came when Mika had performed at a wedding in Karachi, Pakistan.
Incidentally, along with the FWICE action, there was also a call for a boycott by the All India Cine Workers Association (AICWA) over Mika’s decision to perform at a private function in Pakistan.
These bans were imposed after some videos surfaced online in which the singer was seen performing at the wedding ceremony of a close relative of former Pakistan Prime Minister Pervez Musharraf on August 8, 2019.
Mika eventually apologized and claimed that the timing of his performance in Pakistan was “just a coincidence”. At a press conference, Singer said: “The time I went there was not right because the decision on Article 370 had just been taken. I called the federation and told them it was a mistake. I apologize for this mistake and will not repeat it again. I had got a visa, so I went (to Pakistan). If you get a visa, you will also go,” Singer said. (Article 370 refers to the constitutional provision that gave autonomous status to Jammu and Kashmir. It was revoked by the Government of India on August 5, 2019.)
Mika also met FWICE officials to clear all the misunderstandings and the boycott decision was eventually withdrawn. Overall, the FWICE ban on Mika lasted for a little over a week.
Gauhar Khan in 2021
FWICE issued a ‘non-cooperation’ direction against actress Gauhar Khan in May 2021 after she was accused of allegedly violating Covid-19 norms. He was banned for two months.
The FWICE notice came after a police case was registered by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) alleging that a Bollywood actress had violated Covid-19 guidelines. According to the report, despite testing positive for Covid-19 and being “advised to remain in quarantine” by doctors, Khan had arrived at a film set for shooting.
A joint statement issued by FWICE President BN Tiwari, General Secretary Ashok Dubey and Treasurer Gangeshwar Srivastava said: “FWICE strongly condemns Ms Gauhar Khan’s action of continuing shooting even after testing positive for Covid-19 infection, even though she was advised to remain in quarantine.”
A statement issued by the federation said, “FWICE has jointly decided that a ‘non-cooperation’ instruction be issued against Miss Gauhar Khan for two months. Therefore, all our concerned members are advised not to have any relation with Miss Gauhar Khan for the next two months, until a fresh instruction is issued by FWICE regarding allowing her to resume work in the media and entertainment world.”
Chunky Pandey was also banned by FWICE
Actor Chunky Pandey recently revealed that he too had to face a ban by FWICE, and this was in 1986. He recalled that at that time the film industry had gone on a collective strike against the heavy taxes and surcharges imposed on cinema tickets and equipment, but some producers did not pay any attention to this strike. These included Pahlaj Nihalani, who at that time was producing the actor’s first film ‘Aag Hi Aag’.
Although the cast of the multi-starrer project included big names like Dharmendra and Shatrughan Sinha, and all the stars continued shooting during the strike, it was only Pandey who faced FWICE action.
According to an Indian Express report, Pandey explained that at that time, big stars like Dharmendra and Shatrughan Sinha were busy with 30 to 40 films, so “it was not really possible to ban them.” He said, “I was new at that time. My film wasn’t even released yet, so eventually, I was banned for about a week.”
Ban on Pakistani artists continues
Incidentally, not all Pakistani artistes can work in India due to the FWICE ban. The Federation had taken this decision after the Uri attacks of 2016 and the terrorist attacks in Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir last year. Fawad Khan, Mahira Khan, Saba Qamar and Mawra Hocane are among those Pakistani actors whose Bollywood career came to an end due to this ban.
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