Dubai: Bollywood actor-producer Aamir Khan has called out the industry’s growing culture of excess, criticising stars who charge sky-high fees while expecting producers to bankroll their personal luxuries.
Speaking on Komal Nahta’s YouTube show Game Changers, Khan said it was “a shame” that some actors make filmmakers cover costs for everything from drivers and cooks to gym vans, even as the Hindi film industry struggles with box office setbacks.
“The dominance of stars is fine to a certain extent — audiences love them,” Aamir Khan said.
“But the producer should only spend what the film requires. Pay the make-up person, hairdresser, costume designer — that’s all part of the film. But why would the producer pay for my boy or my driver? They work for me.”
The superstar said he was stunned to hear about present-day demands. “Producers now pay an actor’s driver’s monthly salary, the boy who brings tea and coffee, even personal cooks. Some stars bring a cooking van and a gym van on set — and the producer pays for that too. When a star earns in crores, can’t he pay his own staff? Every star should ensure the film is not burdened. That is what being a team player means.”
Aamir Khan drew a sharp line between production-related costs and indulgent personal expenses. “When I did a film on wrestling, the producer covered the training — because that was part of the film. But making them pay for your cook? That makes no sense. If you have that kind of money, spend it yourself. Nobody will object. But don’t make the producer pay for it.”
Khan also revealed how he manages his family during outdoor shoots. “Even when I take my family along, not once have I made the producer cover those expenses. I put in the extra money myself. Today, stars are taking advantage of being stars. It’s odd. It’s a shame that actors are still being unfair to their producers and films.”
With his candid remarks, Aamir Khan has sparked a debate about Bollywood’s star system — and whether the industry can afford such excesses when audiences are demanding better content and tighter budgets.
Aamir Khan on inclusion: “It’s okay to be different”
In a separate interview with Gulf News in Dubai, Aamir Khan showed a very different side of himself — one deeply personal and rooted in empathy. As a mother of twins, one of whom has been recently diagnosed with dysgraphia, I found our exchange about inclusion especially poignant. For Khan, his new film Sitaare Zameen Par, where he plays a basketball coach to neurodivergent children, is not just a project but a mission.
“Inclusion is what I really believe in,” he told me. “I look forward to the day when India becomes 100% inclusive.”
Khan is no stranger to this conversation. His 2007 classic Taare Zameen Par offered Bollywood’s first mainstream look at dyslexia, but he says Sitaare flips the script. “In Taare, it was the teacher helping a child with a learning disability. In Sitaare Zameen Par, it is 10 people who are neuro-atypical — and they are helping the coach.”
Manjusha Radhakrishnan has been slaying entertainment news and celebrity interviews in Dubai for 18 years—and she’s just getting started. As Entertainment Editor, she covers Bollywood movie reviews, Hollywood scoops, Pakistani dramas, and world cinema.
Red carpets? She’s walked them all—Europe, North America, Macau—covering IIFA (Bollywood Oscars) and Zee Cine Awards like a pro. She’s been on CNN with Becky Anderson dropping Bollywood truth bombs like Salman Khan Black Buck hunting conviction and hosted panels with directors like Bollywood’s Kabir Khan and Indian cricketer Harbhajan Singh. She has also covered film festivals around the globe.
Oh, and did we mention she landed the cover of Xpedition Magazine as one of the UAE’s 50 most influential icons?
She was also the resident Bollywood guru on Dubai TV’s Insider Arabia and Saudi TV, where she dishes out the latest scoop and celebrity news. Her interview roster reads like a dream guest list—Priyanka Chopra Jonas, Shah Rukh Khan, Robbie Williams, Sean Penn, Deepika Padukone, Alia Bhatt, Joaquin Phoenix, and Morgan Freeman.
From breaking celeb news to making stars spill secrets, Manjusha doesn’t just cover entertainment—she owns it while looking like a star herself.