The A Listers of Bollywood are not getting what they want. Their staggering fee is now a thing of the past. All major producers have made it verbally clear that no actor will command the fee that he did before Coronavirus.

Says a major producer-director who doesn’t want to be quoted, “It’s a different world now. After the lockdown everyone in every walk of life has taken a financial fall. The stars never need to do that. They have made enough money to last them for several lifetimes. But the days of 50-60 crore fees are over. Either the A-listers get real or they get out.”

While several Bollywood superstars used to take home exorbitant fees upfront, others like Akshay Kumar and Aamir Khan insisted on becoming a co-producer on all the projects that they starred in and sharing in the profits that their films made.

Says a major producer, “That model of payment will also change now. Producers just can’t afford to pay the male stars the fees they got before the pandemic. We are looking at a huge recession and an equivalent pay-cut for the A-listers.”

This producer adds that paring down the superstars’ fee is not a suggestion. It is the only option for the film industry to survive.

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