Ishqiya’s Vidya Balan, Udta Punjab’s Kareena Kapoor and Alia Bhatt voluntarily reduced their fees for this reason - Did you know?

Filmmaker Abhishek Chaubey has given films like Ishqiya and Udta Punjab, which were technically small-budget films, but the stars in them were massive ones. While Ishqiya starred Vidya Balan, Naseeruddin Shah, and Arshad Warsi, Udta Punjab starred Shahid Kapoor, Alia Bhatt, Kareena Kapoor Khan, and Diljit Dosanjh. Chaubey still managed to make these films under budget. But how? Because the actors chose to take a pay cut to work with him. Yes, you read that right. From Kareena Kapoor, Vidya Balan, to Naseeruddin Shah, all these actors decided to take fees lesser than their market rate.  

Abhishek Chaubey On Star Fees

It was recently, at the International Film Festival of India (IFFI), that Abhishek Chaubey shared his insights during a session titled Micro to Millions: Low Budget Films Becoming Blockbusters. He shared, "One thing that I did learn from my assisting years was how to stay disciplined, and that really helped. Even when I directed films like Ishqiya (starring Vidya Balan, Naseeruddin Shah, and Arshad Warsi) and Udta Punjab (starring Shahid Kapoor, Alia Bhatt, Kareena Kapoor Khan, and Diljit Dosanjh), relatively… not very small films, the stars in these films did not charge within quotes of their market rates. They all worked for less money."  

He further continued and shared, "They all worked for less money because I am working firmly in the alternate space within the mainstream. Actors understand this wouldn’t necessarily be a money-spinner, but it can do a lot of good for their reputation. It often helps them get meatier roles, so there are incentives for them."  

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Ishqiya and Udta Punjab are certainly two of the widely known films of Bollywood. While Ishqiya is a dark comedy set in the heartland of India, Udta Punjab is a hard-hitting drama that explores the drug abuse crisis in Punjab and its impact on different strata of society. 

Abhishek Chaubey is known for creating hard-hitting dramas that are set in the heartland of crime. The ace filmmaker started as an assistant director, with his first being Makdee. He later wrote films like Omkara, Kaminey, and Blood Brothers. His directorial debut came with Ishqiya, and then he went on to do films including Dedh Ishqiya, Sonchiriya, Udta Punjab, and Killer Soup, to name a few.

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