Bollywood bows to Rajnikanth’s power

At 58, Tamil actor Rajnikanth does not even come close to being described as a fading superstar. With every new film he signs, he breaks his own record as India’s highest paid actor.

His last film, Chandramukhi, earned Rs50 crore at the box office in Tamil Nadu. And now with the release of his new venture Sivaji, which is expected to bring in Rs16 core in acting fees plus Rs9 crore in a revenue-sharing model with the producer, Rajnikanth is on his way to become one of the highest paid actors in Asia.

The math is mind-boggling for Bollywood watchers who point out that even the biggest Hindi film actors do not take home more than Rs9 crore.

“Rajnikanth is way ahead when it comes to remuneration. It will be a while before Hindi film stars are able to catch up with him,” says trade analyst Amod Mehra.

Industry insiders insist that Hrithik Roshan may become the highest paid actor (Rs12 crore per film) if the much-speculated deal with Adlabs comes through. Roshan is being reportedly offered Rs10 crore after his films Krrish and Dhoom 2 hit the jackpot last year.

Filmmaker Rakesh Roshan, while declining to comment on his son’s pay packet admits that the bar is being raised constantly in Bollywood. “Production budgets are going up, so naturally profits are being passed on to the lead actors,” says Roshan senior.

With more and more actors insisting on a revenue-sharing model with the producer, the pay checks in Bollywood are expected to go up substantially.

For instance, Shah Rukh Khan pocketed the overseas collection of Don — estimated to be a cool Rs9 crore — as his fees.

“The revenue-sharing model is not a new phenomenon in the film industry,” says filmmaker Subhash Ghai.

In the past, actors like Mithun Chakrborthy accepted a share in the territorial box-office collections as their remuneration. More recently, Aamir Khan reportedly asked for a 25 per cent share in the total box office collections of his forthcoming film Lajjo.