There is no dearth of rags to riches stories in Indian cinema with many actors coming from humble backgrounds and making it big. This one star we talk about in this article may not exactly have come from a poor family but he did work his way up the ladder and worked hard at that. As a child, he worked on film sets for as low as Rs 500, eventually graduating to being a hero and eventually India’s highest paid actor, commanding Rs 200 crore per film.
The man who went from Rs 500 per film to Rs 200 crore per film
Vijay, better known by his nickname Thalapathy, is one of the biggest stars in Tamil cinema today and one of the biggest box office draws across India. The actor began his journey as a child artiste in the 80s. Son of Tamil filmmaker SA Chandrasekhar, Vijay’s first film was the 1984 release Vetri, which was directed by his father. In an interview in 2017, Chandrasekhar revealed that the 10-year-old Vijay was paid Rs 500 for his performance in the film by actor-producer PS Veerappa. Vijay went on to appear as a child actor in various films through the 80s before transitioning to lead roles as an adult in 1992 with Naalaiya Theerpu. Over the lext 12 years, before he turned 30, Vijay starred in over 25 hits, a record for any actor at the time.
How Vijay gave 25 hits before the age of 30
In the 90s and early 2000s, Vijay established himself as a leading man in Tamil cinema but gained stardom only in the late-2000s. By the mid-2010s, he was said to have displaced legends Rajinikanth and Kamal Haasan as the biggest superstar in Tamil cinema although some debated this claim. What was undeniable was Vijay’s massive box office pull, which helped him deliver successive blockbusters in like Thuppakki, Mersal, Sarkar, Bigil, and Master. It was reported in May this year that Vijay has charged a whopping sum of Rs 200 crore for Lokesh Kanagaraj’s Leo.
How Vijay became India’s highest paid actor
The Rs 200-crore reported fee Vijay has charged for Leo made him India’s highest paid actor, albeit only briefly. With that price tag, Vijay surpassed the likes of the Khans, Prabhas, and Ajith Kumar. However, Rajinikanth soon surpassed his junior. As per trade sources, Rajinikanth earned Rs 250 crore for his recent hit Jailer. The sum included his share of the film’s massive profit as well. However, Vijay does remain one of the richest actors in the country. According to GQ, as of 2022, Vijay’s net worth is $56 million (over Rs 450 crore).
