One often hears discussions about the cost of touring big stars and how it adds to the burden on the producer. In a recent interview, veteran producer Casey Bocadia condemned actors who take big money for a film and their team. He also gave Amitabh BachchanHe praises the actor for his example and the way he conducts himself. The late 1980s and early 1990s had a challenging phase in Amitabh Bachchan’s career. After stepping away from films to enter politics in the mid-1980s, the superstar returned to cinema, but the massive success he enjoyed in the 1970s was not immediately followed. It was during this time that producer KC Bokadia approached him for Aaj Ka Arjun (1990), Bokadia’s directorial debut.Despite Amitabh not being at the peak of his box office dominance, Bokadia says he was one of the most respected and prestigious stars he has worked with. The veteran producer recalled that Amitabh never expected the producers to bear the expenses of his personal staff. He said the superstar paid for his own spot boy, make-up artist, driver and vanity van, even after being the first actor to be charged Rs 1 crore.“Amitabh was the first person in the industry to have a spot boy, make-up man, driver… He didn’t take any money for them, even then. He brought his own van, his driver and I salute people like that. Actors take crores but it doesn’t hurt the producer much but when you ask for Rs 10,000 for an assistant, we think we will get Rs 01…?” He saidBokadia contrasted Bachchan’s approach with that of several contemporary actors, claiming that many take hefty salaries and expect producers to cover their staff costs.“Now, actors take Rs 50-100 crore… they should be a little generous. Even the producer should feel that they are working with someone who has a big heart and actually deserves that much money,” he said and added, “If you impose unnecessary expenses on the producer… you ask them to pay for a gym in a vanity van, and you feel proud of that?”He also argued that these rising costs made it increasingly difficult for independent producers to survive. According to him, some producers even buy tickets for their own films to boost box office collections, as strong numbers help secure better deals with streaming platforms.Reflecting on her first meeting with Amitabh, Bokadia revealed that she was initially told that she would have to wait for hours outside the actor’s make-up room. Instead, the meeting went surprisingly quickly, with Bachchan agreeing to do the film almost immediately.“It’s my first film as a director. He didn’t even listen to the story. I didn’t have a story, and he said yes to ‘Aaj Ka Arjun’,” he says, adding, “Bachchan sahib said, ‘This is the first time I’m doing a film where I don’t know the story or the director’. I told him, ‘If you can do what I can do on screen, no one else can do it’. Do it with a story that works for you?”After the success of ‘Aaj Ka Arjun’, the duo reunited for ‘Lal Badsha’. Looking back on their collaboration, Bokadia describes Amitabh as a performer whose on-screen presence has always been more important than outward glamour.“People get very upset about other things, like clothes, etc., but I feel what you do on screen, that’s where the actor shines,” he said, before adding that Bachchan “is a lion, and always has been one.”Over the years, KC Bokadia has produced several notable films including ‘Hum Tumhare Hai Sanam’, ‘Lal Badshah’, ‘Ao Pyaar Karen’, ‘Phul Bone Angare’, ‘Naseeb Apna Apna’ and ‘Teri Meherbanian’.
