Manoj Bajpayee remembers the days when he would get Rs 150 travel allowance, says stars would get reimbursed for petrol: ‘Not anymore’

ALSO READ | Alia Bhatt agrees stars’ salaries should be ‘reassessed’ after flops, notes some actors ‘give their money back’ after film fails

Manoj Bajpayee was speaking in jest about actors getting conveyance allowance. However, in the last few years,  Hindi film industry has frequently been questioned about the gigantic salaries that are paid to movie stars. As per a recent Film Companion report, Akshay Kumar was paid Rs 165 crore for Bade Miyan Chote Miyan. The film was reportedly made on a budget of Rs 350 crore and has managed to bring in barely Rs 50 crore in its first week in theatres.

Previously, Alia Bhatt had also spoken about star salaries in Hindi cinema. In a 2022 chat with The Indian Express, Alia said, “I agree that stars’ salaries should be balanced out against the budget of the film. But then, I am no one to tell anyone what they should charge, kyunki main toh choti hun. She added that there are many examples of actors refusing pending fees (or returning money) after learning that their movies have performed poorly. “If you ask me if some reassessing in general needs to happen, I’m sure all the producers are thinking that way… Even a star is thinking that way,” she said.