'Kalki 2898 AD' and 'Pushpa 2' have been talked about even in Bollywood circles. Trade circles in the Hindi belt hold that these two films have the capacity to bail out theatres that are beleaguered due to weak footfalls.
In this context, the budget of 'Kalki 2898 AD' has ostensibly been inflated by early media reports that are purely in the zone of speculation. It is estimated that Prabhas' fee alone is Rs 150 Cr. And the remuneration of the rest of the main cast (read Amitabh Bachchan, Deepika Padukone, Kamal Haasan, and Disha Patani) is another Rs 100 Cr, bringing the total amount spent on remunerations to Rs 250 Cr.
If true, the total budget of the movie would touch five billion rupees, considering that larger-than-life, intricate sets have been put up to shoot the movie. The production cost and landing cost must be high.
Director Nag Ashwin and producer C Aswini Dutt are not unwise to spend Rs 500 Cr at a time when it became clear two years ago that the wild popularity of pan-Indian movies in Hindi is not a foregone conclusion. A pan-Indian film in Hindi can make anywhere from Rs 20 Cr to Rs 400 Cr. Given this, Prabhas' remuneration must have been negotiated with riders.
