Lucknow: Bollywood actor Varun Dhawan has apologised to a disappointed fan who said she waited nearly five hours to meet him during a promotional event in Lucknow, only for the actor to leave the venue within minutes.
The incident took place at Phoenix Mall, Lucknow, where Varun and Mrunal Thakur had arrived to promote their upcoming film “Hai Jawani Toh Ishq Hona Hai.” The event drew a huge crowd, with fans turning up hours early hoping to catch a glimpse of the stars, get photographs or secure an autograph.
But the excitement didn’t go quite as planned.
A female fan, identified in reports as Divyanshi Tiwari, posted a video on Instagram expressing her frustration. She claimed she had waited for almost five hours, but Varun appeared at the venue for only around five minutes. “We waited for 5 hours and he came for just 5 min,” she wrote in her post, which quickly began circulating on social media.
Varun noticed the complaint and responded directly in the comments section. Apologising to the fan, he explained that the situation was out of his hands. “Sorry, I couldn’t give an autograph; we were made to leave a lil early by the cops,” the actor wrote.
According to entertainment reports, the heavy crowd at the mall created safety and crowd-control concerns, after which police reportedly asked the actors to leave the venue earlier than expected. Videos from the event showed a packed turnout, with fans crowding multiple levels of the mall to see Varun and Mrunal.
Varun later addressed the situation on Instagram Stories as well. He acknowledged the overwhelming response from fans in Lucknow and reportedly said that the next time he visits the city, the team would try to arrange a bigger venue with better planning so fans are not left disappointed again.
The actor is currently promoting “Hai Jawani Toh Ishq Hona Hai,” directed by his father David Dhawan. The film also stars Mrunal Thakur, Pooja Hegde, Mouni Roy, Chunky Panday, Maniesh Paul, Jimmy Shergill, Rakesh Bedi and Ali Asgar. It marks Varun’s fourth collaboration with David Dhawan after “Main Tera Hero,” “Judwaa 2” and “Coolie No. 1.”
The film is scheduled to release in theatres on June 5, 2026.
For fans, though, the Lucknow stop turned into a reminder of how unpredictable large public events can become. Varun’s apology appears to have softened the backlash somewhat, but the episode has also sparked a familiar conversation around celebrity promotions: when fans wait for hours, better crowd management isn’t just helpful — it’s necessary.
