Shabana Azmi questions actors' entourage; recalls having a three-member team
What's the story
For the past few months, industry experts have been expressing their displeasure about the rising entourage costs of Bollywood stars, which shoot up films' budgets substantially.
Now, veteran Bollywood actor Shabana Azmi has expressed her astonishment at these costs, calling them "crazy tabs" that are covered by producers.
Speaking to Hindustan Times, she used examples from her own career to illustrate the stark contrast between the industry's past and present practices.
Past simplicity
Azmi recalls modest beginnings in Bollywood
Azmi reminisced about her early career days in the 1970s and 1980s.
She revealed, "I only had a three-member team—a hairdresser, a makeup artist, and a driver."
"In low-budget films, we had nobody. At the most the unit makeup man and hairdresser. I used my own clothes, used the unit's hair and make-up person, and always stayed in the same hotel as the unit."
Industry anecdotes
Azmi shares anecdotes of frugality from Bollywood's past
Azmi shared a memory from the 1983 film Mandi, where she and co-actor Smita Patil chose to travel by bus with other cast members instead of using separate cars.
She said, "I remember (late actor) Smita Patil and I had been given separate cars for the shooting of Mandi. In two days, we gave them up and travelled in the bus with all the actors because they were having so much fun while singing and playing silly games!"
Self-Funding
Actors' self-funding saved film schedules, reveals the actor
Azmi also revealed instances when actors like Sanjeev Kumar and Shatrughan Sinha paid for film schedules out of their own pockets to prevent cancellations due to lack of funds.
She stated, "A couple of times, (late actor) Sanjeev Kumar and Shatrughan Sinha paid for the schedule, which was going to be cancelled because of funds shortage."
On the work front, Azmi was last seen in Ghoomer.