Actor Ameesha Patel has once again called out comedian Zakir Khan over his recent remark suggesting that Bollywood was “jealous” of the success of Dhurandhar 2.
After previously criticising his statement on social media, the actor has now elaborated on her stance.
Ameesha Patel Questions Comedians Targeting ‘Achievers’
Responding to the controversy, Ameesha clarified that her reaction was not rooted in personal animosity. Speaking to Bollywood Bubble, she said, “Main usko personally jaanti hoon. Lekin main ek cheez zaroor kahungi – all these comedians, dekho, khade reh ke achievers ke baare mein baat karna, and to make them the brunt of all jokes, bahut aasan hai. Arre, achiever ban ke toh dikhao, superstar ban ke toh dikhao. Phir jab aap pe joke lagegi, I want to see how they take it. Bolna bahut aasan hai.“
She further stressed that reducing accomplished individuals to punchlines was unfair. “I don’t think it’s correct to strip someone down and make a joke on them. There are so many things you can joke about, but why about achievers? Like I said, in logon ko achieve karke toh dikhane do, ek mukaam haasil karke dikhane do.”
‘Industry Is Learning, Not Insecure’, Says The Actor
Ameesha also strongly rejected the idea that the film industry felt threatened by Dhurandhar 2.
Questioning Zakir’s claim, she said, “Toh mera yahi tha – kya aapne statement aisa kaha ki industry jal rahi hai, insecure ho rahi hai? Aapko phone karke bataya? Did someone call you and say, ‘Hai Ram, Dhurandhar hit hogayi, main toh bahut insecure ho gaya?’ Aapko kaise pata?“
Highlighting the positive response from within the industry, she added, “Ulta Dhurandhar ke aane ki wajah se itne saare logon ne bola ki we need to learn.”
Referencing filmmakers like Ram Gopal Varma and others, Ameesha noted that the film had instead set a new benchmark. “People like Ram Gopal Varma ho ya so many others have said it set a benchmark. Logon ne stories aur Instagram posts kiye praising the film. Actors are reworking their films because they feel ek standard hai abhi, we need to match up.”
She went on to argue that competition drives growth rather than insecurity. “Toh isme competition bad hai? Main samajh nahi pa rahi hoon – agar hum competition ko face nahi karenge, how will we improve? How will we give this audience better and better content, better viewing pleasure, better cinema?”
Emphasising the need to evolve, she concluded, “Toh, we need someone to come and keep on pulling up our socks, right? So how does it make us insecure? It makes us learn. He should have said we are learning from it… Main jaanna chahti hoon ki woh kaun 10 log hain jo inko phone karke bole ki we are insecure, jis basis par unhone yeh statement diya. Khatam baat.”
What Zakir Khan Said About Dhurandhar 2
The controversy began when Zakir Khan, who was co-hosting an awards show with Alia Bhatt, made a remark about the film’s impact.
“Kitne hee congratulatory post aap daldein, kitne hee Story daldein, kitne hee public interview mein aap keh dein meri favourite film. Par sach toh yeh hai doston ke Dhurandhar se sabki jali toh hai. Bomb film mein fute Lyari mein, par dhuan uda hai Bandra se Juhu mein,” he said.
Following the comment, Ameesha took to X to defend the industry, writing, “Dude – Stop spreading negativity! Film industry has valued and respected Dhurandhar! Superstars like SRK, Salman, Sunny, Hrithik, Ajay have given not just 1 but 25 plus mega hits and will continue to do so. Chill – Gadar bahut saalon se sabne already machai hain aur aage bhi machaayenge.”
DUDE-Stop spreading NEGATIVITY!film industry has valued n respected DHURANDHAR!Superstars like SRK,SALMAN,SUNNY , HRITHIK,AJAY et have given not just 1 but 25 plus mega hits n will continue to do so👍CHILL-GADAR bahut saalon se sabne already machai hain aur aage bhi machaayenge👍 pic.twitter.com/MqOD74LH83
— ameesha patel (@ameesha_patel) April 7, 2026
The exchange has since sparked a wider conversation around humour, criticism, and how success in cinema is perceived within the industry.
ALSO READ: Ameesha Patel On Replacing Aishwarya Rai In Mangal Pandey: “Aamir Khan Found Me Very Intelligent”
