Due to Deepika Padukone’s involvement in the issue surrounding her expulsion from Sandeep Reddy Vanga’s Spirit because of her excessive salary, the topic of women’s wage equity in Bollywood has once again gained attention. Deepika was reportedly kicked out of the movie for a number of reasons, including requesting an 8-hour workday and more than Rs 20 crore. Given that the topic of females’ compensation has recently resurfaced, it’s worth noting that Sridevi was long outearning celebrities like Salman Khan, Amitabh Bachchan, and Shah Rukh Khan.

In the 1990s, Sridevi, one of the first pan-Indian celebrities, became the first actress to earn one crore rupees a film. She reportedly paid this much for one of the most expensive Indian films at the time, Roop Ki Rani Choron Ka Raja, which came out in 1993. Back then, only Chiranjeevi charged more for a single film. Sridevi had already increased her fees and was demanding far more than Kamal Haasan and Amitabh Bachchan when they joined the Rs 1 crore club in the mid-1990s.

Sridevi received more money than some of the most well-known Bollywood performers. From 1992 to 1997, the most well-known figures in the industry were Sunny Deol, Sanjay Dutt, and the three Khans: Shah Rukh, Salman, and Aamir. They charged between Rs 50 and Rs 75 lakh back then, however. After Sridevi retired from filmmaking in the late 1990s, the Khans were able to reach the Rs 1 crore milestone.

In the mid-1990s, Sridevi was at the height of her fame, having achieved success in many languages. It was thus surprising when she announced in 1996 that she was quitting the film industry since she was expecting her first child with Boney Kapoor. Judaai, released in 1997, was her last film for over 15 years. At the time, she was only 33 years old. Following that, Sridevi raised her two children, Janhvi and Khushi, over the next several years. Later in life, Sridevi starred in movies like Mom and English Vinglish, receiving high praise from critics.