VIEW: Leave it to the market
Recent reports suggest that Bollywood heroines are a put-upon lot. They work as hard as their male co-stars, but are only paid a fraction of what they earn. The highest paid female stars, like Kareena Kapoor, can get about Rs 2 crore a film. But Akshay Kumar, one of the best-paid male actors, gets a whopping Rs 17 crore per film. On an average, Bollywood’s heroes get remuneration almost 10 times more than the heroines.
All this leads to the question if female actors should be paid as much as their male counterparts. How much a person is paid depends, however, not only on the work put in but also its market value. The film industry is no exception. The fact is that a Shah Rukh Khan or Hrithik Roshan are much more saleable than an Aishwarya Rai or Priyanka Chopra.
Recent reports suggest that Bollywood heroines are a put-upon lot. They work as hard as their male co-stars, but are only paid a fraction of what they earn. The highest paid female stars, like Kareena Kapoor, can get about Rs 2 crore a film. But Akshay Kumar, one of the best-paid male actors, gets a whopping Rs 17 crore per film. On an average, Bollywood’s heroes get remuneration almost 10 times more than the heroines.
All this leads to the question if female actors should be paid as much as their male counterparts. How much a person is paid depends, however, not only on the work put in but also its market value. The film industry is no exception. The fact is that a Shah Rukh Khan or Hrithik Roshan are much more saleable than an Aishwarya Rai or Priyanka Chopra.
The audience goes to cinemas to see these actors, as can be proven by box office receipts over the past year. The biggest hits of the year are all hero-centric stories, from Chak De! India to Om Shanti Om and Partner. On the other hand, Umrao Jaan and Laga Chunari Mein Daag have done worse than expected, highlighting the lack of audience interest in women-centric stories.
When films start to sell on the names of female stars, they will receive remuneration equivalent to men. This situation is common across the world. While the scale of disparity might be less in Hollywood, it is still a big divide. A Julia Roberts or an Angelina Jolie are paid $15-20 million while Tom Cruise gets approximately $30 million a film.
It is only when the audience begins to accept women-centric films that pay for male and female stars will even out. That is happening where Hollywood is concerned. Bollywood will, in its own time, undergo a similar transformation.
Any attempt to meddle with a business model that clearly works is to court disaster.
Times of India
All this leads to the question if female actors should be paid as much as their male counterparts. How much a person is paid depends, however, not only on the work put in but also its market value. The film industry is no exception. The fact is that a Shah Rukh Khan or Hrithik Roshan are much more saleable than an Aishwarya Rai or Priyanka Chopra.
Recent reports suggest that Bollywood heroines are a put-upon lot. They work as hard as their male co-stars, but are only paid a fraction of what they earn. The highest paid female stars, like Kareena Kapoor, can get about Rs 2 crore a film. But Akshay Kumar, one of the best-paid male actors, gets a whopping Rs 17 crore per film. On an average, Bollywood’s heroes get remuneration almost 10 times more than the heroines.
All this leads to the question if female actors should be paid as much as their male counterparts. How much a person is paid depends, however, not only on the work put in but also its market value. The film industry is no exception. The fact is that a Shah Rukh Khan or Hrithik Roshan are much more saleable than an Aishwarya Rai or Priyanka Chopra.
The audience goes to cinemas to see these actors, as can be proven by box office receipts over the past year. The biggest hits of the year are all hero-centric stories, from Chak De! India to Om Shanti Om and Partner. On the other hand, Umrao Jaan and Laga Chunari Mein Daag have done worse than expected, highlighting the lack of audience interest in women-centric stories.
When films start to sell on the names of female stars, they will receive remuneration equivalent to men. This situation is common across the world. While the scale of disparity might be less in Hollywood, it is still a big divide. A Julia Roberts or an Angelina Jolie are paid $15-20 million while Tom Cruise gets approximately $30 million a film.
It is only when the audience begins to accept women-centric films that pay for male and female stars will even out. That is happening where Hollywood is concerned. Bollywood will, in its own time, undergo a similar transformation.
Any attempt to meddle with a business model that clearly works is to court disaster.
Times of India
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