There have been countless debates on how the humongous fees charged by Bollywood movie stars often hinder the production’s other aspects. Many producers and directors have been vocal about this. Recently, filmmaker Madhur Bhandarkar, known to helm many female-oriented films, has opened up about his heroines agreeing to slash their fees to maintain an efficient budget for the movie. He named Kareena Kapoor Khan, Priyanka Chopra, and Tabu amongst the list of actresses who agreed to go for a fee hack while working with him.
Madhur Bhandarkar worked with Priyanka Chopra in the 2008 film Fashion. The movie revolved around the brutalities of the modeling and glamor industry behind all the gloss. Priyanka also won a National Award for her spectacular performance in the film. The filmmaker collaborated with Kareena Kapoor Khan in the 2012 film Heroine. The film depicted the ups and downs a female superstar faces in her professional and personal life.
Despite being at the top of their game while working with him, Madhur Bhandarkar revealed that these actresses agreed to slash their fees because they genuinely wanted to be a part of the movie. Talking to Bollywood Hungama, Madhur Bhandarkar said, “Every female actor slashed her price when they were working with me. Since, I only had a budget of ₹1.5 crore for Chandni Bar, Tabu didn’t not charge any fee for the film. She took money against Bombay or Delhi territory, and nothing else apart from that. She worked with such conviction. Raveena Tandon (Satta) and Bipasha Basu (Corporate) reduced their prices. Even Priyanka Chopra and Kareena Kapoor Khan slashed their fees. They didn’t charge the market price from me because they were keen on making these movies. The entire film was resting on their shoulders so everybody slashed their prices.”
Meanwhile, on the work front, Kareena Kapoor Khan is gearing up for the release of her film, The Buckingham Murders, which is all set to release on September 13, 2024. The teaser of the movie was released recently by the makers. Meanwhile, Priyanka Chopra is shooting for her film The Bluff in Australia.