Madhur Bhandarkar THUNDERS: “Producers complain that actors ask for 12-13 vanity vans. But if a prominent actor signs his film, same producer would have no qualms in arranging for 14 vans!”

Madhur Bhandarkar was at his candid best on the third and final day of the Red Lorry Film Festival 2026 in Mumbai. The National Award-winning filmmaker opened up like never before on the rising costs and the entourage culture in Bollywood.

Madhur Bhandarkar said, “There’s zero unity in the industry. The producers often complain that actors ask for 12-13 vanity vans. But if a prominent actor signs his film, the same producer would have no qualms in arranging for 14 vans! So, they don’t practice what they preach.”

He added, “There has to be unity. They need to decide that this is what they’ll pay to the actors and this is what they’ll offer. Once that’s done, even the actor would understand and be apprehensive. Instead, the scenario is such that the producer tells the actor, ‘Tu uss producer ki film chhod de. You do my film. I’ll pay you more’. It’ll take time for this situation to rectify. There are bigger players who call the shots. They need to take a strong stand on this matter.”

Madhur Bhandarkar continued, “Many producers are upset about entourage costs. But it is the producers who arrange and bear its costs. Why don’t they come up with a template where they’ll only pay a certain amount for the actors’ staff? Instead, we hear, ‘Usne tujhe 5 vans di. Main tujhe 6 vans dunga kyunki main bada producer hoon’!”

At another point in the conversation, Madhur Bhandarkar opined, “There are very few actors who would give that immense commitment. When I see a film like Dhurandhar and the unbelievable performance of Ranveer Singh, it is clear that he has given 2 or 3 years of his life. Sadly, people don’t want to go the difficult path… Had I narrated a subject like Pushpa to anybody in the Mumbai film industry, that actor would have instructed his secretary, ‘Isko kal se yahan bulana nahin’. The conviction is missing. Even Animal would have been rejected. Hats off to Ranbir Kapoor for understanding its potential and for doing such a great job. Other actors would have pointed out 50 flaws.”

Also Read: Madhur Bhandarkar hails Ranveer Singh’s “UNBELIEVABLE” performance in Dhurandhar; opines, “Had I narrated a subject like Pushpa to anybody in Mumbai film industry, that actor would have instructed his secretary, ‘Isko kal se bulana nahin’”

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