Mandakini says she was never paid for 16-17 early films, recalls ‘homely’ yet unfair Bollywood sets
Comparing the working environment of that era with the present, the ‘Ram Teri Ganga Maili’ actress said interactions between actors and other members of the film fraternity were much more informal.
Veteran actress Mandakini has shared her recollections from the early days of her career in the Hindi film industry, detailing a period when sets resembled intimate gatherings rather than structured workplaces. She revealed that she was not paid for roughly 16 to 17 films during this time. In an interview with ANI, Mandakini, who is now known as one of the highest-paid actresses in India, reminisced about the camaraderie among colleagues and described the set atmosphere as warm, informal, and "homely". She fondly recalled the movies as enjoyable and the crew as cooperative.
Mandakini recalled that she occasionally agreed to work without demanding payment, especially when filmmakers or colleagues asked her to assist for a short period. She said, "I used to say, 'Okay, no problem'." However, while she received payment for most of her projects, there were a significant number of films where she did not receive any money.
The reasons for this varied; some projects were never completed or released, while others had portions of the agreed payment still outstanding. For Mandakini, these memories represent a time when the film industry operated quite differently, being an unusually close-knit environment, yet also where informal agreements could lead to actors waiting for owed payments.
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