Dilip Kumar Took Rs 18 Lakh Fee, Reveals Shekhar Suman: Aaj Duniya Bhar Ke Contracts Hai, Pehle... | EXCL

Shekhar

Suman, amid the promotions of The Pyramid Scheme, took scathing digs at Bollywood. In an exclusive interview with Zoom for the recently released Amazon Prime Video show, the actor praised yesteryear stars for their honesty and commitment towards cinema and filmmakers. When asked the veteran whether celebrities back in the 70s, 80s and 90s were more producer-friendly in terms of their remunerations and other necessary amenities, Suman revealed Dilip Kumar used to charge Rs 18 lakh for a film. In contrast, Dharmendra’s fees would be between Rs 8 to 10 lakh.

Shekhar Suman reveals whether yesteryear actors were more producer-friendly

Talking to Zoom, Shekhar said, “Paisa toh humesha se hi ek benchmark raha hai, ispe koi do rah nahi hai. Dilip Sahab 60s mein Rs 18 lakh lete the. That was a huge amount. Dharmendra ji Rs 8 lakh, Rs 10 lakh lete the. Agar aaj uski keemat dekhi jaye toh vahi hoga Rs 80 crore-Rs 100 crore. Tabhi lakh bhi bohot mana jata tha. Lekin unmein deen-imaan bohot tha. Rafi Sahab tab gaate the aur accha lagta tha toh voh bolte the ki main paise nahi lunga. Kishore Da bolte the, paise nahi hai dene ke liye, phir bhi main gaa deta hu. Aaj toh duniya bhar ke contracts aate the, pehle toh sab zubaan par chalta tha. Uss waqt log bohot acche the, zamana accha tha, aur neeyat saaf thi. Ab vaise nahi raha. Exceptions ki hum baat na kare.”(Translation: Money was always the benchmark. Dilip Sahab would charge Rs 18 lakh in the 60s. That was a huge amount. Dharmendra ji’s fees would be around Rs 8-10 lakh. If we match it today, the amount is closer to Rs 80-100 crore. Back then, earning a lakh was a lot. But, the actors were honest and loyal. If Rafi Sahab liked any of his songs, he would not take his fees. Kishore Kumar would sing for free in case the filmmaker did not have enough budget. Today, there are hundreds of contracts, but earlier, commitments would be verbal. People were honest and their intentions were pure. I can’t say the same about actors today. Yes, there are exceptions.)

Shekhar Suman slams plagiarism

He further added, “Zyadatar schemes chalane wale log humare industry mein ghum rahe hai. Jis industry ka naam doglepan se bhara ho, Bollywood, uss industry ka kuch nahi kar sakte. Pehle toh aap apni zameen dhundhiye. Har cheez chori chakari, plagiarism, gana uthana. Ab toh net pe itni filmein hai ki churana aur aasan ho gaya hai.”(Translation: Scamsters are freely living and working in today’s cinema ecosystem. When the name of the film industry is Bollywood, what else can we expect? Actors must find their positioning in the industry. Everything is stolen now, from films to songs. Now, with movies available on the internet, stealing has become easier.)

About The Pyramid Scheme

The Pyramid Scheme also stars Ranvir Shorey, Paramvir Singh Cheema, Alfia Jafry, Aanjjan Srivastav, Ashish Raghava, Akhilendra Mishra, Smita Bansal, Vijay Kumar, Indresh Malik, Ravi Bhel, Sushant Singh, Sonal Jha, and Sadanand Patil.