Samir Soni calls out KJo, Farah over star fees controversy
Actor Samir Soni recently expressed his views on the escalating star fees in Bollywood, challenging the concerns raised by filmmakers Karan Johar and Farah Khan. The rising costs in the film industry have sparked a debate among many, with filmmakers worrying about its impact on overall profitability. Johar and Khan have been particularly outspoken about the high fees charged by top actors and associated overhead costs.
'You're the ones who are paying for all of it...'
In a recent interview with Ujjwal Trivedi, Soni questioned the filmmakers' role in these escalating expenses. He stated, "All I'd like to say to Karan and Farah is that if you think the expenses are rising, you are the ones who is paying for all of it." "You can't be signing a big star for ₹100cr and then say that these guys take a lot of money...Because otherwise, there are people who will work for ₹1cr also and for ₹50L."
Earlier, Rajeev Khandelwal echoed Soni's stance on high fees
Soni's stance is in line with actor Rajeev Khandelwal, who previously criticized Johar and Khan for their remarks. Khandelwal argued that the filmmakers themselves are responsible for creating the current market for high fees by offering inflated paychecks. He said, "Till the time when ₹25cr was working for you, it was fine, but now that it's not, you're coming out and complaining about high salaries."
What did Johar say about rising filmmaking costs
Johar recently discussed the increase in filmmaking costs during an interview with Faye D'Souza, commenting that there are about 10 viable actors in Hindi cinema who are all asking for exorbitant fees. He stated, "Those movie stars asking for ₹35cr are opening to ₹35cr. How's that math working?" Similarly, Khan, in a separate interview, pointed out the rising entourage costs, calling it a "wastage of resources."
Meanwhile, Anurag Kashyap also slammed the rising costs
Another filmmaker, Anurag Kashyap, who has been vocal about this issue, expressed his views in an interview with Humans of Cinema. He stated, "A lot of money that is spent doesn't go into making the film. It goes into the paraphernalia, it goes into the entourage." "You're shooting in the middle of a jungle, but one car will be sent to the city three hours away specifically to get you that five-star burger you want."
