These 7 Stars Worked In Films For Free — One Even Became A Top Heroine
Shah Rukh Khan played a pivotal role in Kamal Haasan's film Hey Ram (2000), without accepting any remuneration. He was reportedly keen to collaborate with Kamal Haasan and agreed to act in the film despite its modest budget.
When Shahid Kapoor heard the script of Vishal Bhardwaj's Haider (2014), he was so moved that he agreed to act in the film without taking a fee. Shraddha Kapoor also appeared in the film, which received widespread critical acclaim.
Deepika Padukone, now considered one of the leading actresses in the industry, made her Bollywood debut in Om Shanti Om (2007) alongside Shah Rukh Khan. It is reported that she did not charge any fee for the film, recognising the opportunity to star opposite one of Bollywood's biggest icons in her very first film.
In Manto (2018), a biographical film on the life of legendary Urdu writer Saadat Hasan Manto, Nawazuddin Siddiqui delivered a powerful performance. Reports suggest he agreed to act for a symbolic fee of just one rupee, out of deep respect for the author and the film's subject matter.
Thalapathy Vijay, now one of the highest-paid actors in India, began his career with the film Vetri in 1984, starring alongside Vijayakanth. At the time, Vijay did not take any payment. Today, he reportedly charges as much as Rs 200 crore per film.
Director Ranjit, in an interview with Matribhoomi Star & Style, shared a memorable experience working with Mammootty, revealing that the veteran actor worked in Paleri Manikyam (2009) entirely free of charge. His contribution was a testament to his dedication to meaningful cinema.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Mint
11 minutes ago
- Mint
Mahavatar Narsimha Box Office Collection Day 19: Ashwin Kumar's movie inches closer to ₹180 crore domestically
Mahavatar Narsimha Box Office Collection Day 19: Animated mythological epic Mahavatar Narsimha, released on July 25, is all set to hit the ₹ 180 crore mark at the domestic box office. The Ashwin Kumar directorial, which saw a rather dud opening at the box office, has witnessed a spectacular growth in three weeks, setting new benchmarks for Indian animation. The Sandalwood film, portraying powerful tales of Lord Vishnu's third and fourth avatars, has emerged as the highest-grossing Indian animated movie. Hombale Films co-founder, Chaluve Gowda, in an interview with Hindustan Times, said, 'When we get this kind of reception, it proves that Indian films have an audience. And even for Disney movies, the artists are all Indians.' 'Yes, we had the resources. The technology was there, but someone just had to take that risk and prove that in India, Indian animation movies will also work,' he added. Mahavatar Narsimha was released in Hindi, Kannada, Telugu, Tamil and Malayalam in 2D and 3D formats. According to industry tracker Sacnilk, Mahavatar Narsimha hit a slowdown as it entered its third work week, from a 77.66% fall in earnings on Monday, to minting just ₹ 1.92 crore on Tuesday. However, Mahavatar Narsimha's 19-day total stands at an impressive ₹ 176.83 crore, which is very near to the ₹ 180 crore milestone. If the movie is able to maintain its momentum, it will likely reach the milestone by tomorrow, Wednesday. Notably, Mahavatar Narsimha's Tuesday earnings are only an early estimate. The number will be revised after taking the evening and night shows in account. Mahavatar Narsimha has also done wonders at the global box office. The Kannada movie did a worldwide business of ₹ 221.25 crore gross in 18 days, grossing ₹ 13.1 crore from the overseas market. Mahavatar Narsimha's India gross stands at ₹ 208.15 crore. Chaluve Gowda told LiveMint that the second instalment of the Mahavatar Cinematic Universe will likely be released by 2027. 'The next chapter will certainly come faster. Ashwin Kumar is already deep in development, and I can assure fans that Chapter Two will be coming within two years,' he said.
Hindustan Times
11 minutes ago
- Hindustan Times
Gen Z sparks style rebellion by making heirloom jewellery their go-to everyday statement: Know which styles are trending
Gen Z is straight up raiding their mom's and grandma's jewellery trunks. They are borrowing these heirloom jewellery not just for wedding celebrations any more. These intricate jewellery with beautiful craftsmanship are having a major moment. And just like always, Gen Z's nature to mix and match, these traditional jewellery pieces are also styled with contemporary wear, from dresses to suits. Gen Z Bollywood stars Janhvi Kapoor and Ananya Panday are rocking kamarbandh and maang tikka.(PC: Instagram) In an interaction with HT Lifestyle, Garima Maheshwari, Head of Design at Tanishq, shed light on this growing trend of Gen Z embracing heritage jewellery as a form of rebellion, and what pieces are in style. ALSO READ: Saree on a date? Celebrity draper Dolly Jain shares 5 tips to keep it stylish What triggered the interest? Indian youth are slowly saying no thanks to the clean-girl aesthetic and the generic, cookie-cutter fast fashion, minimalism that social media often pushes. Garima revealed that the trigger is a growing desire among Indian youth to indulge in cultural pride. Calling it a 'rebellion' against sameness, she said, 'I think wearing heirloom jewellery is a rebellion against the act of algo-driven sameness. I feel that the whole embracing of Indian-ness, your own identity, your own story, your roots, is also becoming globally accepted, and it kind of reflects a sense of pride and heritage.' Instead of following mass trends, Indian youth, as Garima pointed out, prefer to hold on to pieces that tell their story and reflect their own heritage. It focuses on individuality. They are also often inspired by celebrities who wear traditional jewellery. Janhvi Kapoor is one of the Gen Z celebs frequently seen sporting her heritage South Indian jewellery. In another post, wishing her fans a Happy Vishu, Janhvi wore her traditional South Indian jewellery, from gold kamarbandh to jhumka, beautifully carrying her cultural pride. Innovation like saree Interestingly, Garima drew a parallel between the innovation happening with traditional heirloom jewellery and the transformation of the saree. The six yards of graceful fabric see a lot of experimentation, again spotlighted by celebs like Taapsee Pannu, who often paired a t-shirt or crop top with a saree. Garima opined, 'Saree comes from a sense of pride, you have seen it in your mother's wardrobe. Similarly, building a parallel for understanding, jewellery that you feel is elaborate, beautifully handcrafted, and relevant only for certain outfits, Gen Z have totally come out of that. I say a big thanks to innovative ways of styling, which have now made it effortless to sport a kasu mala with a power suit and walk into your board meeting. Kamarbandhs, or waist belts, are really viable too. Celebrities have sported these looks and made the younger generation fearless in expressing themselves and finding their own sense of validation.' Moreover, Gen Z has an entrepreneurial mindset. Garima shared that their startup spirit is redefining the meaning of heirloom jewellery, as they are not just inheriting these pieces but are also buying and creating heirlooms for themselves. Statement jewellery that is paired with contemporary outfits Garima revealed that the maang tikka is gaining popularity, and it's truly everywhere these days. The maang tikka is the hot new accessory, now being paired with contemporary wear as well. Never Have I Ever star Maitreyi Ramakrishnan paired a maang tikka with a black leather jacket. Similarly, Lara Rajagopalan, a member of the girl band KATSEYE known for hits like 'Gabriela', wore a mini dress with a maang tikka, showcasing the waves this accessory is making in the fashion scene. Styling rule that sets Gen Z's vibe apart So what is the key distinction of the same jewellery's comeback generations later? Garima shared that years ago, the same jewellery was heavily layered, completely decked, making it look overwhelming. She said, 'The whole focus is on a singular element in jewellery. So, if someone is wearing a kamarbandh, they wear it alone. Back in the older days, it was about decking from head to toe, but that's not relevant to the modern lifestyle.' This excessive layering, as Garima noted, is not practical for today's college-goers or corporate women. Heritage jewellery is no longer restricted to pujas or weddings; now, she added that one may see a corporate woman pairing temple jewellery, jhumkas, a choker with an ethnic dress or even a strappy outfit. Gen Z prefers to spotlight one bold item, like a kamarbandh or a pair of striking jhumkas, keeping these traditional jewellery pieces wearable for everyday fashion. It is that one standout piece that becomes the hero accessory. Garima further explained with the example of mugappu, a South Indian jewellery piece resembling an off-centred brooch with a long chain. It's contemporary and chic on its own, but its beauty lies in the craftsmanship. In the end, she added that storytelling plays a key role in jewellery design, and that Gen Z is deeply invested in the narrative, the story behind what they wear.
Mint
31 minutes ago
- Mint
From ‘mahua' to ‘palash', chefs plate up the forest for fine dining menus
Next Story Rituparna Roy The Wild Food Festival 2025 edition has chefs experimenting with India's wild produce in the most creative ways Mutton ribs with wild green risotto at Slink & Bardot, Mumbai. Gift this article Picture these dishes. A yakhni reimagined with kantola or teasel gourd. A sticky toffee pudding glazed with mahua jaggery caramel. A risotto cooked with foraged wild greens. Picture these dishes. A yakhni reimagined with kantola or teasel gourd. A sticky toffee pudding glazed with mahua jaggery caramel. A risotto cooked with foraged wild greens. It's not everyday that some of the country's top chefs spotlight ingredients deeply rooted in the culinary culture of India's forest communities. In the process, they are also making these wild foods fun and relevant for the urban diner. The effort is part of a larger initiative of the Wild Food Festival, to highlight the significance of India's wild produce, and understand their complex relationship with the ecosystem. The seventh edition of the one-day festival is scheduled to be held on 23 August in Mumbai. Also Read | What India cooks during the monsoon Since its inception in 2018 by OOO Farms, an agricultural project that works with farming communities in Gujarat and Maharashtra, the festival has managed to build a dialogue around food security and nutrition deficiency in the country. In 2022, it was joined by The Locavore, a platform that champions India's diverse regional food culture through storytelling and advocacy. 'The idea behind partnering with restaurants and professional chefs is to extend the conversation beyond the one-day festival. It is also a great way to showcase innovations and creativity with these wild ingredients across cuisines and formats," says chef Thomas Zacharias, the founder of The Locavore. Around 10 restaurants from Mumbai and Pune are part of the endeavour this year, and has seen chefs travelling to Palghar in Maharashtra to understand how the adivasi communities forage and cook with raanbhaji, or the uncultivated monsoon produce of the region. Kashmiri thali at Folk, Mumbai. For chef and restaurateur Jasleen Marwah, who is known for her expertise in Kashmiri cuisine, the challenge was to present the ingredients in a restaurant format. 'Considering most of the produce is bitter or sour, I zeroed in on a Kashmiri thali, so all I had to do was find the correct vegetable to match the flavour profile of the dishes," says Marwah, who helms Folk, a restaurant specialising in regional Indian food in Mumbai. The menu features a classic dum aloo cooked with a vegetable called pendhra, a yakhni with teasel gourd, and batter-fried akkarghoda, a wild fern that mimics nadru or lotus stem. After multiple trials, chef Ali Akbar Baldiwala has come up with six dishes for the wild food menu this month at the restaurant Slink & Bardot in Mumbai. Known for his playful renditions of global favourites using local ingredients, he has recreated a kimchi noodle salad with wild bamboo shoots, a Vietnamese dish called Bo La Lot or chicken skewers with fatangadi leaves (similar to betel leaf), fish parcels grilled in palash (the flame of the forest tree) leaves, a take on the Parsi patra ni machi, and a risotto using forest greens. 'Diners tend to find the protein-forward dishes more relatable. But the others need a bit of prodding. I am hopeful we will get there," he says. Kartoli or teasel gourd salad at Malaka Spice, Pune. The festival also allows restaurants to drive the conversation around local sourcing. 'As chefs we routinely cook with zucchini, asparagus and artichokes, but tend to overlook vegetables that are indigenous to our country," says Ilvika Chandawarkar, who handles research and business development at Pune's Malaka Spice restaurant. Although wild foods require meticulous processing, as some of them contain alkaloids, and need to be cooked with a souring agent, "it's not very different when chefs cook with say enoki mushrooms for the first time. They are not native to India, right?" she points out. Chandawarkar has incorporated wild bamboo, teasel gourd, loth, a type of tuber with stalks and pendhra into her Asian-inspired menu. If there is one ingredient that has caught on the hyperlocal food trend, it is the mahua (or mahura), considered to be the crown jewel of the tribal food culture. It is the 'tree of life', and provides food, fodder and fuel to the indigenous communities living across the tribal belt of India. From cocktails to desserts, chefs are now drawn in by its nuanced flavour profile. For the festival, chef Nikhil Menon is serving a Japanese-style ice-cream sando made of shokupan bread at Mizu Izakaya in Mumbai this month. Inspired by mahua roti, a staple among the forest dwellers, it is a textural delight complete with a sauce made of mahua nectar, honey and white shoyu, and butter toasted mahua. Mahua sticky toffee pudding at Maska Bakery, Mumbai. 'I have always been fascinated by the folklore surrounding mahua, and how it is seen as a matriarchal figure. The fact that it is super seasonal makes it more special," says chef Heena Punwani, who runs Maska Bakery in Mumbai, and first encountered the flowers in 2019 during her stint at The Bombay Canteen. She has crafted two warm desserts (available via Maska bakery Airmenus this month) keeping the monsoon season in mind — cinnamon rolls layered with mahua butter, and a sticky toffee pudding with mahua and dates. Punwani takes them up a notch by roasting the flowers in ghee and turning them into a caramel for a sticky and chewy mouthfeel. The possibilities are truly endless. Also Read | Come rains, and it's time for 'shevala' The Wild Food Festival 2025 will be held on Saturday, 23 August 2025, at Bunts Sangha Mumbai, (opposite RPH College), Chunabhatti, Kurla, Mumbai - 400070. Topics You May Be Interested In Catch all the Business News, Market News, Breaking News Events and Latest News Updates on Live Mint. Download The Mint News App to get Daily Market Updates.
