Actor Katrina Kaif has been reigning over Bollywood for a while now, both in terms of the figures that her movies reap at the box office and her undeniable sex appeal. She was declared Asia’s sexiest woman and was also given the title of the hottest celebrity in 2012. The year 2013 saw her reach the top of a completely different domain — she made it to the top ten of Forbes list of 100 Indian celebrities. As the only female actor on the list, her earnings for the past year summed up to a whopping INR637.7 million.
Clearly, the actor has been earning a lot and she seems to understand its significance. “Coming from a family that never had that kind of money, initially, it was important. Financial security is crucial for your family and I have a large family,” she said, according to the Hindustan Times. “Money does matter when you don’t have it. When you need it, you realise the value of it. In that sense, money will always have value.”
For somebody who earns so much, Katrina claims that she is not a big spender. “I’m not a big spender or shopper. Neither am I extravagant nor do I have big expenses. I mainly spend on travel. I don’t buy overpriced clothes as I feel such expenses are unnecessary. I probably wouldn’t buy expensive watches or jewellery either,” she said.
Buzz has it that competition in B-town not only revolves around acting capabilities but also extends to how much one gets paid. However, Katrina feels that competition based on money is not really healthy. “I’ve no idea how much any of the other actresses get paid for their movies or their stage shows. There’s competition in every field and that’s healthy. It makes you work harder and be your best. Competition, not in terms of money or number of projects, but in the quality of your work, is very healthy,” she asserted.
The most common notion is that with money comes power, so what exactly does power mean to Katrina? “The luxury to be able to have choices — whether it’s selecting your work, the ads or the shows you want to be part of or choosing what to do in life. It also means having people listen to you and your voice having an impact,” she said.
Although the actor is not into spending big, she supports the idea of making worthwhile investments with money and feels investing in property is something that can be really helpful in the long run.
Published in The Express Tribune, January 3rd, 2014.
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