Months after it was reported that she demanded a large sum of money to play Sita in a film, Kareena Kapoor Khan broke her silence and addressed the allegations. She has stated that she was never approached about the film in the first place.
Kareena was said to have raised her fees to 12 crores for her role as Sita in an adaptation of the Hindu mythological epic Ramayan. According to a Bollywood Hungama report from last year, Kareena previously charged 6-8 crore, but she doubled her fees for the film. Kareena was said to have demanded a large sum because the film would require her to work for several months.
When asked about the Ramayana and how the topic of pay disparity was twisted into something else due to trolling, Kareena told Zoom, “I never explained because I was never offered that film. I’m not sure why I was cast in that because I wasn’t a good fit for the film. These are all made-up stories, and I don’t want to put anyone down because they, too, may require stories. Every day, people search for Instagram stories, but I’m not sure where that came from.”
Saif Ali Khan, Kareena’s actor-husband, plays Lankesh in another Ramayan-inspired film, Adipurush. Ravana, the antagonist in Ramayan, is also known as Lankesh.
Soon after the rumors began to circulate last year, a few Twitter users claimed that Kareena’s fees to play Sita were infringing on their religious beliefs. It also sparked a debate about whether similar questions would be raised if a male actor raised his fees.
Kareena is currently preparing for the release of Laal Singh Chaddha, which stars Aamir Khan in the titular role of Laal and she plays Rupa. Mona Singh plays Aamir’s onscreen mother in Advait Chauhan’s Laal Singh Chaddha.
