Arshad gets Rs 3 Crores for GolMaal 3, beats Karee

By Subhash K Jha

He's in. He's out. He's finally…. in! After the producers Ashtavinayak agreed to pay him a whopping Rs 3 crores to be part of the third segment of the ongoing Gol Maal franchise Arshad Warsi finally agreed to do the film.

After frantic negotiations the deal was finally cut on Monday. And yes, Arshad has condescended to be part of Gol Maal 3.

His 3-crore rupee fee is higher than every member of the cast barring Ajay Devgn. Even higher than Kareena Kapoor who has a 3-film deal with the producers.

Says a source, "Arshad after Ishqiya was adamant on his fee. The producers tried to convince him to take a much smaller fee arguing that his co-stars Shreyas Talpade, Tusshar Kapoor and Kunal Khemu (who replaces Sharman Joshi) were accepting a far smaller fee and if Arshad was paid 3 crores the other actors would feel short-changed. "

Arshad stuck to his guns. Stories came out saying the actor, now hot at the boxoffice after Ishqiya (or so he believes) did not like the script of Gol Maal 3.

Says Rohit, "We were really keen to have him in the film. And yes the price has been worked out between Arshad and the producers. So he's on. "

Strangely though Rohit confirmed Arshad's presence in Gol Maal 3 Arshad was still in denial. Said the actor, "I am not sure yet. They've been after me for some time now. But I'm not able to make up my mind. I need to give time to my own production Hum Tum Aur Ghost. So I don't know how I'll manage the dates. "

However sources from Gol Maal 3 insist that Arshad is in at a staggering fee (for a non-lead actor).

The other actor like Arshad who has started acted pricey after a hit (3 Idiots) is Sharman Joshi who was reportedly asking for Rs 2. 5 crores. He turned down the third part of Gol Maal through his secretary.

Says Rohit Shetty, "Even before the scripting of Gol Maal 3 Sharman sent me a message through his secretary saying he had other plans.

I immediately looked for a replacement and am very happy with Kunal Khemu. Any regrets about Sharman? None at all. In fact we met at the airport recently and there wasn't any mention of Gol Maal 3. "

With Ishqiya and 3 Idiots Arshad Warsi and Sharman Joshi seem to be determined to move to the big league. Both actors are aiming to play the main lead.

Funnily Sharman's next release Toh Baat Pukki is being promoted as a Tabu-Sharman Joshi film when Vatsal Seth has a role as important as Sharman.

Without naming anyone Rohit Shetty says, "There're lots of very talented actors out here who are fabulous side attractions but can never be the main course. "

We can safely assume he's talking about Arshad and Sharman.