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Tragic reality of Indian sports: Mary Kom got Rs 25 lakh but Dhoni will get Rs 80 crore for his biopic

The difference shows the stark contrast between what cricketers and other athletes in India.

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Mary Kom and MS Dhoni
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MS Dhoni’s biopic starring Sushant Singh Rajput is one of the most-awaited movies of the year and with good reason. It tells the tale of India’s most successful system who rose to the very top without any godfather, overcoming the myriad barriers that present itself for small-town Indians. And thankfully, it’s not going down the route of traditional Bollywood cricket movies which range from bad to worse with the sole exception of Lagaan. We absolutely love what we’ve seen so far but how much did it cost to make Mahi’s story come to life?

According to a Mid-day report from 2015, Mary Kom earned a pitiful Rs 25 lakh for the Priyanka Chopra-starrer, while Paan Singh Tomar earned around Rs 15 lakh. And her film made a total of Rs 100 crore at the box office (globally) which is probably more than Mary Kom’s earnings throughout her life.

Compared to the aforementioned figures, MS Dhoni reportedly charged a mind-blowing Rs 80 crore for his film to Mary’s Rs 250 lakh. It’s true he is a World Cup winning captain with lots of charm and brand appeal, but should he really be worth 320 times a gold-medallist. Is Dhoni worth that much more than Kom?

Or is just life unfair? But if you think Mary was underpaid for her story, wait till you hear Milkha Singh’s story.

Milkha’s sad tale

Bhaag Milkha Bhaag saw the sprinter paid a measly Rs 1 (though the note was printed in 1958) which helped him find a new generation of fans.

A source was quoted saying by NDTV: “Milkhaji was not interested in money. All he wanted was that Rakeyshji should make the film."  Rajiv Tandon, the CEO of Mr Mehra's had said: "From my childhood days I remember when elders came home, they would present Re 1 notes to the children. It was like gifting a blessing. We wanted to do the same for our film too and started out to source this special currency note." 

It seems like the makers promised Milkha 10% but he was reportedly not paid. He had claimed "They have made a good film, but I am still waiting for what I was promised."  According to his confidant, he was ‘very hurt and disturbed’.

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