Kamal Ghorui
Stars bringing in huge entourages has been the talk of the town for a while now. t. In recent years, it has become common for actors to arrive on set with teams that can sometimes include as many as 20 people, along with demands for multiple vanity vans. Many producers and some actors also have spoken about it and voiced their concern as this increases the overall film’s budget and is a burden for the makers. Now filmmaker Priyadarshan has also opened up on. According to the veteran filmmaker, this practice not only inflates production costs but also disrupts the working environment on set.Priyadarshan, who recently worked on films such as ‘Bhooth Bangla’ starring Akshay Kumar and ‘Haiwaan’ featuring Saif Ali Khan, said he feels drained by the sheer number of people present during shoots.In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, the filmmaker explained how the crowd around actors often interferes with the filmmaking process. “I only get exhausted seeing the people around actors. On a floor, if I am working with three actors, I will see 30 people who are doing nothing and just standing around. I cannot see my visuals through the camera. They are blocking my view. I have never seen this in any other place than Bollywood.”The 69-year-old director further criticised the practice, pointing out that many individuals on set contribute little while still being paid. “So many people come onto the set, do nothing and still make money. This exhausts me. I hate it. It’s the only thing I dislike about Bollywood.”Recently, trade analyst Komal Nahta had also spoken on this issue. Speaking to Faridoon Shahryar on his YouTube channel, Nahta recalled witnessing a star arriving with a large team even for a simple event appearance in Jodhpur. “Even for an appearance, an actor will come with eight to nine people. A big star came with a costume designer, social media manager, photographer, two bouncers despite us providing security, a makeup artist and a hairdresser. He literally came wearing a suit, got down from the flight and reached the venue,” he said.Nahta went on to highlight how even the smallest tasks can lead to hefty charges. “And the costume designer, just to justify her payment…” he said, before demonstrating the act of adjusting a collar. According to him, the stylist simply fixed the actor’s collar and charged a substantial fee for it. “That is all she did, and the organiser had to pay her Rs 20,000,” he said.
