India's highest paid film stars

•  After Sivaji, which cost Rs 70 crore and grossed Rs 150 crore, Rajnikanth has hiked his price to Rs 20 crore.

• After a series of successes in 2007—like Heyy Babyy and Namaste London—Akshay Kumar has hiked his price from Rs 15 crore per film.

• Apparently, Shah Rukh Khan has never been greedy about his rate and has maintained a steady asking price. Several of his films are made by his close friends Karan Johar, Faha Khan, or by his own production house Red Chillies Entertainment; this keeps his rate down. He makes most of his money through live performances and brand endorsements.

• Despite his woes in life, Sanjay Dutt is one of the highest paid actors.

• Priyanka Chopra has signed a three-film deal with UTV for Rs 20 crore.

• The Big B may figure way down the list now, but he was the first to charge Rs 1 crore per film back in the '80s. Also, despite his superstar tag, he is now more of a character artiste.

• Abhishek Bachchan: Like father like son.

• Despite two of John Abraham's most recent films, Goal and No Smoking, having bombed at the box office, he is in high demand.

All the figures stated above are rates charged per film.

Source: BT Research and Industry sources