Shoojit Sircar says ‘popular actors’ will have to lower their fees: ‘If they don’t, directors will stop approaching them’ | Bollywood News
Amid the raging debate around escalating star fees and entourage charges, Shoojit Sircar has weighed in on the matter. The filmmaker said that some “popular actors” need to reconsider their fees — or risk losing opportunities. He claimed that more money should be invested in taking a particular shot to match the director’s vision, instead of pumping it into the actor’s bank account.
“I won’t say much about people’s entourages or what they charge, but I am sure of one thing: popular actors will have to lower their fees. If they don’t, directors will stop approaching them. We have to make a film within cost now, if we want the audience to come and watch it. Go expensive wherever needed. If the director visualizes a shot a particular way, pay more for that. The director should not compromise on his vision to save money for the actor’s fees,” Shoojit said.
In the interview with ANI, Shoojit Sircar cited his own example of making films with modest budgets with his friend and producing partner, Ronnie Lahiri. “But that has not been the case with us. For all the films we’ve made, we’ve never let the cost go too high. That’s why we have fewer complaints. And we’ve worked with actors who understand that they’re working on a Rising Sun film with Shoojit Sircar, and that the cost will not be too high,” he said.
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Shoojit picked the tendency of actors and filmmakers not to take risks as another reason behind the Hindi film industry struggling today. “I would say that filmmakers and producers, as creative people, are not taking risks. When it comes to storytelling, you can’t just repeat old stories. You have to take some risks somewhere. You need to bring new, insightful subjects, no matter what the genre is,” said Shoojit.
The filmmaker last helmed the slice-of-life film I Want To Talk, starring Abhishek Bachchan, which released in cinemas last year. While the film got great reviews, it didn’t perform at the box office. In an interview with NDTV, Shoojit spoke about the film’s box office performance and said, “I was completely disoriented because I did not know what exactly did or did not work in terms of audiences going to the theatre. But now, the film is also on OTT, and I see a lot of people reacting to it.”
In an interview with SCREEN, Anjum Rajabali, the head of the Screenwriters Association of India, also echoed the same concern. “With all the huge money you’re pouring into the star, they deliver flop after flop. Today, big stars don’t have work because the producers can’t afford them. The producers, as a body, get together and realise within themselves some ground rules. They tell the star that we can pay you this much, you can decide within that how much entourage you can pack in. Do I ask the producer to pay my driver if I write for them? The producer would say I’m mad. They can tell me off, right? Likewise, all producer bodies should have a national meeting and say enough is enough. Are the stars nawabs? Well, they’ve been treated like nawabs so they’ll behave like nawabs,” he said.
