Huma Qureshi has protested against the gender pay disparity supported by producers in Bollywood.
Emphasizing on the need for change, she told Afterhours with All About Eve that the pay disparity exists deeply in Bollywood.
Hearing this, the host asked whether screen time determines an actor’s pay.
“The conventional way is, the bigger the star, the more money they take home. Often times, even when their screen time is shorter and their roles are smaller,” the star explained.
She added, “Alia Bhatt will draw more money than others even if her part is small. I am assuming that she was the highest-paid actor in Gangubai Kathiawadi.”
Huma then expressed sorrow for male actors taking a major fraction of the budget home despite the fact that female actors can also bring star power to cinemas, but are ignored instead of being worked on.
“Unfortunately, in our films, women are often not paid as much as men, even if they’re at the same level of stardom. There is a bias that a male actor needs to be paid more because the film’s story is always revolving around them,” she stated.
Speaking about how this effects movie budgets, the star said, “I will get a bigger budget for the male hero because of his gender. That’s a fact. Studios do this. Change can't come by just two people speaking about pay parity in their interviews.”
Pay disparity has remained a hot topic in the Indian film industry.
For the latest star-studded production, Fighter, Telly Chakkar reported that Hrithik Roshan charged INR 50 crore whereas Deepika Padukone was handed INR 15 crore, although both the celebrities have comparable star power today.
