bollywood entertainment
Bollywood Spins
The trend of lead actors having a
share in the profits is not entirely
new though. Amitabh Bachchan is
known to have kept territories of his
movies as payment in the 1980s
F
By DANFES
or his latest money-spinner, Sultan, Salman Khan
would have normally charged about Rs70 crore as
remuneration. Instead, he chose to have a share in the
profits, and may have taken home Rs110-150 crore from
the blockbuster, which made around Rs 600 crore in worldwide
box-office collections, according to the film portal Koimoi.com.
Today, most of the top male stars, including Shah Rukh Khan,
Salman Khan and Akshay Kumar, command a share—ranging
from 50 percent to 80 percent — in the profits of a film, besides
a flat upfront fee. Aamir Khan is the only A-list actor who insists
on being paid entirely from the profits.
The trend of lead actors having a share in the profits is not
entirely new though. Amitabh Bachchan is known to have
kept “territories” of his movies as payment in the 1980s. This
meant that back then the profits from any of the 11 distribution
territories in India (such as Mumbai, Punjab, Rajasthan, among
others) would go to him instead of the film’s producer.
“The top artistes started this thing because they knew there’s
a market for them. People go for their name and the poster
value they bring,” says Sanjay Bhandari, a bank loan consultant
to the film industry.
“When they realized that their name sells very well, that
they’re a brand in themselves and the commercial viability
of the project goes up with their name, they decided to start
sharing profits,” he explains. The biggest advantage of the
profit-sharing arrangement is that it brings down the cost of
production, thereby minimizing the risk a film-maker faces.
“Say, Aamir Khan were to charge Rs50 crore as remuneration,
and the film’s cost of production is another Rs 40 crore. That
makes for a budget of Rs 90 crore,” says trade analyst Komal
Nahta. “When he charges in terms of profit, the cost of the
film is only Rs40 crore. So it’s a given that it will be a profitable
venture for everybody.”
Nahta adds that a star stands to make a lot more money if the
film is a big hit, like Salman Khan’s Sultan. “It’s not a price he
could have demanded for his acting but because he’s a partner
and commands a fixed fee plus partnership, he gets that kind of
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The Dayafter November 16-30, 2016
money,” Nahta points out.
“For the A-list actors, it definitely works because they know
their films will do well at the box office. And even if they don’t,
they are already profitable before release since they are sold
to distributors at prices which are higher than the cost of
production. Regardless of whether the project works with the
public or not, the actors and producers have made their money,”
Nahta says. A share in the profits also ensures an actor gives a
project his best — from filming to publicity and marketing.
“When actors who’ve got a very important role to play in the
process of film-making are partners, it makes their involvement
that much higher,” says film-maker Vipul Shah. “And at the
end of the day, if the film does well, they make more money,
which is a big motivation for everybody to remain that much
more committed to the film. Plus, if after all the har