Vidya Balan opens up on female actresses remuneration

The Bollywood salary difference is a topic that actor Vidya Balan is talking openly about. The actor was taking part in a roundtable conversation when it was brought up that female actors in Bollywood are paid less than their male colleagues. In response, the Sherni star said she was content with her pay in the context of her movies.

In an interview with a well-known news channel, Vidya said, “I don’t know about pay parity because I am not doing films alongside the ‘big heroes.’ I think that’s where it comes into play. But if you had to see the overall percentage of what I get paid… within the budget of a film to what a hero gets paid, I think the percentage is the same. Now their films cost 10 times more than what my films do, so obviously I am getting paid ten times less. But, within my construct I am happy.”

It’s not the first time Vidya has offered an opinion on the subject. She had already admitted that male and female actresses in Bollywood earn significantly different salaries. However, she is optimistic that this gap will decrease over time and would rather focus on the performers’ progress in doing so.

Vidya most recently appeared as a journalist in Suresh Triveni’s film Jalsa. Shefali Shah and Manav Kaul were also featured in the movie. She will next be seen in an untitled movie with Ileana D’Cruz, Sendhil Ramamurthy, and Pratik Gandhi, who played the lead in Scam 1992.