Fortune is a fickle mistress. So is fame. And who knows this better this than our veteran Bollywood stars, who make quick hay while the sun shines. Sanjay Dutt, who has not really had a talking-point role in a long time, is keen to leverage the success that Kancha Cheena has brought him. Dutt has hiked his rate from Rs 5 crore to a staggering Rs 10-crore plus. It was for ‘Agneepath’ that he had charged Rs 5 crore, and from the looks of it, he is not going to visit that amount any time soon. While industry watchers are still reeling from the impact of the news, Dutt’s CEO Dharam Oberoi, confirmed the story and justified the hike. “Every actor raises his price after a big success. If Sanju has delivered the biggest hit of 2012 so far, doesn’t he deserve the hike?” Oberoi says ‘Agneepath’ has turned to an unexpected turning point in the star’s career, akin to what Munnabhai and earlier Vaastav achieved. “People cheered him at the election campaigning too,” points out Oberoi. A friend close to the star said after a somewhat tumultuous phase when he flirted with politics and settled down with Manyata, he is in a ‘happier space’ now, thanks to ‘Agneepath’. “While a certain section of the audience found ‘Agneepath’ extremely violent, there is a large section which has lapped up the film and Dutt’s stupendous performance,” the friend said. Though Dutt is yet to take up a new project, it will be interesting to see how producers respond to his demand. At present, most A-list actors go for a profit-sharing package. The Khans take home around Rs 27 crore, while Hrithik Roshan charges Rs 20 crore, Ajay Devgn charges Rs 18 crore and Ranbir Kapoor post Rockstar, is charging around Rs 12 crore.
