Veteran lyricist Javed Akhtar has praised actor Ranveer Singh. stalwart. He revealed that he was so impressed with the spy thriller that he personally called director Aditya Dhar to congratulate him.

Akhtar praised in an interview with Zoom stalwart And said, “I saw stalwartThis is a great film, very well made. I got the director’s number and called him and congratulated the young man who had made this film. It’s a good film, a very well made film.”

In recent developments, Akhtar has found himself at the center of attention for a different matter. As the dramatic beginning of a war film border 2 Perspective, 81-year-old man shares India Today As the production team approached him to write new verses for the iconic track When will you come home And passing moments. However, Akhtar rejected the offer. He minced no words, describing the modern habit of expanding on established hits as “intellectual and creative bankruptcy”.

He insisted, “They asked me to write for the film, but I refused. I really think it’s a kind of intellectual and creative bankruptcy. You have an old song that has done well, and you want to add to it and then re-write it? Create new songs or just accept that you can’t do the same level of work. Let bygones be bygones. What’s the need to recreate it?”

In stalwartRanveer plays the role of undercover agent Hamza Ali Mazari. The film also brings together a formidable cast: R Madhavan as Indian spy master Ajay Sanyal, Sanjay Dutt as SP Chaudhary Aslam, Akshaye Khanna as real-life gangster Rehman Dacoit, and Arjun Rampal as ISI Major Iqbal, who is inspired by terrorist Ilyas Kashmiri.

Actress Sara Arjun is also debuting with Ranveer in this film. Actors Rakesh Bedi, Manav Gohil, Gaurav Gera, Danish Pandor, Raj Zutshi, Saumya Tandon and others are in lead roles.

stalwart Released theatrically on December 5, 2025.