The offer stumped Dale Bhagwagar, public relations manager to many a film star. An agency, hired by a well-known clothing brand, wanted a top actor to canvass support for a political party.
Money these days is hard to come by and the Election Commission keeps a hawk eye on the expenses of parties. So, it offered the actor no fewer than 20 sherwanis! "I am yet to get over that call," said Bhagwagar.
Bhagwagar has fielded 10 or 12 calls, at the very least, everyday in the run up to the general elections. "It's been busy for me and the maximum offer that has been given by a leading political party has been Rs 35-40 lakhs (Rs 3.5 to Rs 4 million)," he said. This offer, it is learnt, was for Hrithik Roshan who turned it down.
Perhaps he didn't find the return on time-spent good enough. But films stars like Salman Khan and Koena Mitra and even some small-screen stars like Varun Badola have been seen regularly at rallies of political parties this time round.
Khan was the biggest glamour industry campaigner in this year's elections. He campaigned for both the Congress as well as the Bharatiya Janata Party at different times and is said to have made Rs 20 lakhs (Rs 2 million) for every appearance.
Do parties have that much money? Maybe, they don't. But they are backed by businessmen who end up paying the stars in cash. Or in sherwanis.
It doesn't matter if the film star doesn't know the party's manifesto (Koena Mitra, for instance, had no clue about the details of the party she was representing), for all that matters is really the money they make at the end of the canvassing.
Mitra is paid around Rs 10-12 lakhs (Rs 1 to Rs 1.2 million) each time she appears on the campaign trail. Like her, Mahima Choudhary and Zeenat Aman (no matter how much it is out of goodwill) get paid too but comparatively lesser: Rs 500,000-700,000. In addition, their airfare (business class) and hotel accommodation is taken care of.
"They don't make speeches and don't go on campaign trails as a friendly gesture. They do it for money," said a source busy fielding calls from interested parties, who wanted to get on board some television stars for this year's campaigning.
"They promise trips to exotic destinations, are willing to load TV stars in jewellery, even get gadgets like LCD sets installed in homes. There's a lot that parties offer but these are add-ons. Cash is always on the cards," said this source.
According to him, Saakshi Tanwar (of Kahaani Ghar Ghar Ki fame) was offered a chance to not just canvass but also contest a seat in Rajasthan on a BJP ticket.
"The party made an offer of Rs 10 lakhs (Rs 1 million) but she refused," he added. While Tanwar may be an exception, TV stars are usually paid in the region of Rs 300,000-500,000 with add-ons that include paid vacations, gadgets, designer clothes (yes, that's right) and what have you.
"An election campaign requires stars to sweat it out and bake in the heat. It's more than just attending events and that's why they command fat sums of money," said Bhagwagar.
