From Katrina to Deepika, here's how costly it is to use Bollywood stars to promote films

* Rs1.5L a day for make-up, hair, driver and spotboy fees

* Rs75K-Rs1L a day for stylists to source outfits

If you were shocked at how much (reportedly Rs55 lakhs) Katrina Kaif’s red hair in Fitoor cost the producers, then this will kill you. She charges Rs1.5 lakh a day for make-up hair, driver and spot boy each time she makes a TV appearance. So when she goes to promote her film on Comedy Nights and other TV shows, that’s what it costs the channel. No, she is not the only actress to do so. Deepika Padukone charges the same amount because the make-up persona and stylists that these two actresses hire are usually the same. Says an insider, “In fact, sometimes there is a clash because both want the make-up and hair person.” Apart from the actor’s staff, the stylist whose job it is to dress an actor, charges anything between Rs75,000 to Rs1 lakh per shift. Just to source clothes, not even make them. And these clothes are then returned to the designers, who sell them in their stores.

While actors don’t get paid to promote their films, it costs the producer a bomb. While TV events are paid for by the channel, all other events like TV interviews to trailer and song launches, meet-and-greet with the media, are all paid for by the producer. Typically, a month is kept aside to promote a film. So do the math about what it costs the poor producer. Also, there are city tours, apart from the charter flights, the producers also have to shell out for hotel and food bills for not just the actor but the staff and the entourage. 

Says a source from a production house, “Deepika and Katrina are the costliest. Kangana has upped her price now. 

Producer Mukesh Bhatt, who includes the appearance fee in the remuneration for the actress, admits that this has been a phenomena for the last seven years after the corporates who came into the film industry. He feels while it is not a big deal for major studios to shell out this kind of money, it becomes taxing for individual producers. “On shoots too producers also have to pay for the hotel bills of the star’s managers too, apart from hair stylist, makeup, spotboy, driver and costume designers who bring along their managers too. Why do you need a manager? It’s a free ride for them but the producer is bleeding himself dry in broad daylight. It’s a corrupt system which is thriving and it has to end. Filmmaking has become an expensive proposition these days. Burdened with this surplus expenditure, how are we going to survive? Most producers are lying when they say their films are a success, they are actually losing money by the hour. Our job is to manufacture glamour, not become a victim of it. As I tell people, buying a star is more expensive than making one. When I signed Bipasha Basu for Raaz 4, she was a big star, but the price I paid her was all -inclusive of the appearance fee. She knew I wouldn’t take her in the film otherwise.”

He sums it up. “The single producer is bleeding, making films on unrealistic budgets. This won’t last long.”