Small-screen, big bucks

The TV industry is going in for big-budget soaps. And  directors are now raking in big money with production houses vying to grab the best of them.  Today, an average director gets Rs 8,000- 10,000 per day while well-known directors get Rs 40,000.

A director, on conditions of anonymity, says, “Weekly serials used to have budgets of Rs 25,000 to 30,000 per episode, now, one episode costs a few lakhs. An average Balaji or DJ’s (Tony and Deeya Singh) episode costs between Rs 6- 7 lakh. Producers are also ready to spend Rs 15-20 lakh for extravagant special episodes.” Incidentally, the  success of Balaji’s Kyunkii Saas Bhi and Kahaani Ghar Ghar Ki is one of the key factors for this upsurge in directors’ pay packets.

Earlier, Balaji was the only big paymaster. Then DJ’s Jassi Jaisi Koi Nahin, Sunjoy Wadhwa’s Saat Phere and Neelima Bajpai’s Banoo Main Teri Dulhann joined the list of mega shows.

“High profile directors like Anil V Kumar direct Ekta’s shows when they launch. She pays directors who can deliver high TRPs very well. Smriti Iraani too paid a huge amount to Santaram Verma for directing Thodi Si Zameen Thoda Sa Aasmaan and the high-budget Virrudh,” says the insider.

- Santaram Verma (Virrudh): Rs 45,000 per episode
- Anil V Kumar (Balaji shows): Rs 40,000 per episode                                                     
- Gary Bhinder (Kasamh Se): Rs 35,000 per episode
- Siddharth Sengupta (Aek Chabi Pados Mein): Rs 35,000 per episode
- Anshuman Singh(Left Right Left): Rs 30,000 per episode
(All are approximate figures)

—After Hours Correspondent