Pahlaj Nihalani, the veteran producer and former CBFC chairperson, left a legacy marked by both accomplishment and controversy. According to an exclusive report by Bollywood Hungama, Nihalani passed away on June 4, 2026, but one story remains largely untold: how he saved Ranbir Kapoor from a contractual penalty during the Jagga Jasoos release.
In 2017, Jagga Jasoos—Ranbir's musical comedy co-starring Katrina Kaif—was 11-12 days from release when a crisis emerged. Rishi Kapoor arrived at Nihalani's Juhu home at midnight with an emergency: Disney required the completed film immediately, or Ranbir would face a substantial penalty.
The problem was immediate. Mixing and post-production work were still underway. The censor certificate had not yet been applied for. Most officials would have declined a midnight request. Nihalani did not.
He agreed to screen the rough cut the next morning. He guided Ranbir through the online application process when the actor did not know how to file it. By 9 a.m., five committee members were assembled at NFDC's Worli theatre.
The screening took three hours. It was a clean family film with no cuts required. By noon, the examining committee had submitted its report. By 4 p.m. that day, the certificate was ready. Ranbir submitted it to Disney the next morning, and the crisis was resolved.
What followed revealed Nihalani's character. He was planning Aankhen 2 at the time. When an industry friend suggested that Ranbir should join the project as thanks, Nihalani refused. "He never expected anything in return," the source says. "He didn't do favours for favours—he did it because it was right."
While public discussion focused on Nihalani's CBFC tenure, this quiet act of support went largely unnoticed. It offers a different measure of the man.
