Meet highest earning TV star in India, earns ₹60 crore per month, not Kapil Sharma, Rupali Ganguly or Amitabh Bachchan
The highest earning TV star only appears in one TV show, twice a week and takes home ₹60 crore per month. His last Hindi film didn’t fare well commercially.
Known for his massive fan followings across India and abroad, clubbed with his unmatched screen presence, this actor is India's highest-paid TV star. He appears only in one TV show and takes home a whopping ₹60 crore per month. If you're guessing Kapil Sharma, Rupali Ganguly of Anupamaa fame, or even Amitabh Bachchan, think again-- you are not even close.
Highest earning TV star
The highest-earning TV star in India is Bollywood superstar Salman Khan.
Salman Khan's Bigg Boss fees
As per a report of Hindustan Times, Salman Khan charges ₹60 crore per month for hosting Bigg Boss 18 which premiered on 6 October, 2024 on Colors TV and JioCinema.
Quoting sources close to the show production, the report revealed that Salman hiked his fees last year and now the final remuneration is close to ₹60 crore per month.
Bigg Boss 18 ran for 15 weeks just like the previous season and concluded with its finale episode on January 19, 2025. Karan Veer Mehra became the winner of the season.
Working for 15 weeks, Salman has reportedly earned somewhere around 250 crore.
Salman Khan has become the face of the Bigg Boss house for more than a decade now. The show initially began with Arshad Warsi and then Amitabh Bachchan as the hosts, however the ratings of the show skyrocketed ever since Salman came on board. In fact, when Bigg Boss shifted to OTT with Karan Johar taking on the hosting duties, it failed to generate the same buzz that Salman’s presence brings.
In fact, at times when Salman skipped Bigg Boss episodes due to health issues or film commitments, the show ratings reportedly dipped, claimed the report. Hence, Salman remains the backbone of the show’s success and it is no brainer why the makers are happy to pay him more.
Reportedly, Salman who used to charge somewhere between ₹5 and ₹10 crore per film, began working on Bigg Boss 15 years ago. As it is believed that he earns around ₹150 crore per film, he demands similar fees for the TV show which takes a good one-third of his year.
Salman Khan vs Kapil Sharma, Rupali Ganguly, Amitabh Bachchan
Notably, no one comes close to Salman Khan's fees. While the richest TV star Kapil Sharma is said to earn around ₹60 crore for The Great Indian Kapil Show Season 1, the richest female TV star Rupali Ganguly seemingly charges ₹3 lakh per episode for Anupamaa.
Salman's TV success can only be compared with Amitabh Bachchan who is the driving force behind yet another long-running, successful TV show, Kaun Banega Crorepati. However, one must consider that Amitabh works for five episodes a week, earning more money than Salman who only shoots two episodes a week for Bigg Boss.
According to a report of GQ Magazine, Salman Khan's net worth is estimated to be around ₹2,900 crore.
The actor was last seen in the film, Sikandar which wasn't successful at the box office.