Ameesha Patel on gender pay parity in Bollywood: ‘A film is selling because of the hero, so he deserves more’

Bollywood has seen an ongoing debate over gender pay parity with many leading ladies - including Deepika Padukone, Priyanka Chopra Jonas and Anushka Sharma - voicing their concern about how female actors are underpaid compared with their male counterparts. However Ameesha Patel - who is gearing up for the release of her upcoming film Gadar 2 - does not hold such an opinion. In fact, she believes that the fight for equal pay is not relevant and that male actors ‘deserve’ to be paid higher.

Also read: Ameesha Patel takes to social media and calls out Gadar 2’s Anil Sharma Productions for their mismanagement 

Speaking in an interview with Bollywood Hungama recently, Ameesha said that pay parity does not exist in Bollywood and neither does it in Hollywood. The actress is of the opinion that the success of the film depends on the male actor, and hence he deserves the extra amount. She further elaborated that she is fine with this, and that she is not a ‘hypocritical’ person nor a ‘female fighter’ who would ask for equal pay.

“Pay parity doesn’t exist in Bollywood and it never will. It doesn’t even exist in Hollywood either. To be very honest, a film does ride on the hero’s shoulders. Why are we running away from that? I can say I want the same pay as my male co-star, but the truth is, the film is selling because of the hero, so he deserves it,” Ameesha said.

To support her argument, the actress said that many male-oriented films do better at the box office than female-oriented films. “I will never say I want the same pay as Shah Rukh Khan, Salman Khan, Aamir Khan, Sunny Deol or Akshay Kumar. The audience is coming for them. Yes, we add a considerable amount in a significant role, but how many female-oriented films have done those kinds of box office numbers that even a solo hero film can do? So, why should we fool ourselves?”

Also read: Is Ameesha Patel NOT HAPPY to be a part of Gadar 2 because of Anil Sharma Productions? 

Ameesha, however, insisted on getting the same ‘comfort’ on set as the male actor gets. She said, “Give me as much comfort as my male co-star, because we work in harsh environmental conditions. I want to perform my best. It is harder environmentally for us (women). In snow-clad mountains, we have to be in chiffon sarees when heroes are in their winter gear.”

Helmed by Anil Sharma, Gadar 2 is a sequel to the 2001 film Gadar, starring Sunny Deol and Ameesha. The film is set to hit the theatres on August 11.