Child actors have been a staple part of Indian cinema for over nine decades. Ever since the days when a young Nargis wowed fans at the age of 6, child actors have been stars themselves. Many even rivalled heroes and heroines with their stardom. Today, that stardom has translated into earnings too, with many child actors raking in the moolah. The richest Indian child star today is worth crores as a teenager.

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India’s richest child actor is...

Till last year, the tag of India’s richest child actor was with Sara Arjun, the daughter of Raj Arjun, who was seen in blockbuster films like Ponniyin Selvan. However, as Sara turned 18 and stopped being a ‘child’, the crown shifted to another young actress – Riva Arora. An actress and influencer best known for her roles in films like Uri and Chhatriwali, Riva is worth over $1 million (Rs 8.3 crore) as per reports. In March last year, Riva reached 10 million followers on Instagram, after which she gifted herself a swanky Audi worth Rs 40 lakhs.

Riva Arora’s age controversy

Riva began her film journey in 2019 with Uri: The Surgical Strike, in which she was praised for her acting. In an interview she gave after the film in 2020, Riva mentioned that she was nine years old. Early news reports put her year of birth at 2010, which would make her 14 today. However, Riva’s mother has disputed that, saying that she is 2006 born, which would make her 17 today. Given her glamorous social media presence and videos with older male stars, Riva and her mother have been criticised, too, for allegedly overtly sexualising a minor. In an exclusive chat with DNA last year, Riva had addressed the controversy and said, “What do I even say to that? I don’t have anything to say to people who are doubting my age or what I am doing. The people who are giving me love are enough for me.”

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