Reality shows mean moolah!

It's raining crores for celebs since the trend of reality game shows hit big time on television. And the best part is — our enterprising celebs are making much more money than what they would have made by just acting in run-of-the-mill films or serials. "Obviously no one will do such shows for free. The fee varies from person to person depending on his or her credibility and seniority," says Alka Yagnik who was recently seen as one of the judges in Sa Re Ga Ma Pa L'il Champs.

But it seems that our celebrities are hesitant to reveal the actual amount for fear of inviting the income tax department to their homes. "This is something I wouldn't like to discuss," says Alka Yagnik. Bappi Lahiri (her co judge) gives an evasive reply. "Sa Re Ga Ma Pa was a big show and was a huge hit. I can't talk to you about the figures though. But I can say that it was a kids' show which had been produced in the range of Rs 1-2 crores. It wasn't Kaun Banega Crorepati," he says.

So we decided to get the inside picture from other sources. One of our sources from the Indian Idol production team clarifies that the judges were paid anywhere between Rs 50,000 to Rs 70,000 per day depending upon their star value. The same source adds that famous folk singer Ila Arun was paid around Rs 50 lakhs for judging the series Fame Gurukul. Whereas the other judges of the show like Javed Akhtar, Shankar Mahadevan and Kay Kay were paid around Rs 50,000 per episode.

Film star Bipasha Basu who appeared as a celebrity judge charged Rs 2.5 lakhs for a single episode she appeared in. For Jhalak dikhla ja Shilpa Shetty was paid a lump sum amount of Rs 40-50 lakhs for the full series. And recently it has been publicly declared that super star Shah Rukh Khan is getting Rs 40 lakhs for a single episode of Kaun Banega Crorepati.

Even our television celebrities are not lagging behind. If money didn't have a big role to play, why would one take out precious time from one's daily schedule? "Money surely plays a very important part. But more than money, people get to see what the celebrities are in their real life," says Hiten Tejwani, one of the contestant of Nach Baliye. His fellow contestant Narayani Shastri doesn't seem to differ from Hiten. "Nach Baliye didn't have a lot of money involved. I did the show as I am very fond of dancing," says Narayani. Yash Tonk who is a strong contender for the finals feels that the celebrities deserved to be paid.

"Definitely money makes a lot of difference. We slog so hard that we deserve to get paid," he asserts.
A little birdie from Nach Baliye's production team reveals that the contestants get double the money they get for daily soaps. The amount ranges from Rs 25,000 to Rs 40,000 per day depending upon their popularity. But when it comes to divulging the amount they choose not to co-operate. "I can't discuss it," says Hiten. Narayani and Yash too don't want to spill the beans.

"Sorry, I can't give you the figures," Narayani says while Yash adds saying, "I can't say anything. It's better that you ask the channel." They may all try to hide the fact, but in show business nothing can be completely hidden. The large flats and cars these stars flaunt after doing Reality shows are indicators enough to the 'moolah' they are raking in!