Bollywood has been in a slump for quite a while now. Stories aren’t as touching and personal as they used to be, and the characters are poorly written and feel very one-dimensional.
Stories have started to feel redundant as if the same plot is reused in every film. Every movie feels like a copy of a copy, and originality is lost.
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But why is this happening?
Darab Farooqui, a film and screenwriter, opened up about the harsh reality of why Bollywood is going downhill.
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In a long informative tweet, Darab candidly penned out how screenwriters are going through the worst time in Bollywood.
His post said how screenwriters are paid 10% when they sign the contract, and an additional 10-20% after the script is approved.
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This is also paid if the actors sign.
He talks about how writers can’t sustain themselves just by writing two movies per year. They only receive about 20-30% of the amount until the film is made.
By doing so, producers gain huge leverage as for the cost of one script, they can invest in three to four projects. This reduces their risks significantly and shifts the risk entirely to the writers.
Despite incurring all the risk, all the profits go directly to the producers and the actors.
This is the reason why lousy films are being made, he says.
The writers build the base of the film. If the base isn’t strong enough, films are bound to fail.
Actors have been demanding excruciatingly high rates but what will an actor work of if there is no script? They charge so much only because of their face value.
As an audience, we must understand that we also must raise our voices about these things. We cannot just sit and complain about how Bollywood is delivering lousy films without taking any action towards it. Because the film is ours, as much as it is theirs.
Long and Important post on Screenwriters.
Screenwriters are having the worst time in Bollywood.
They receive 10% upon signing the contract, and then they must write the entire script, which is then approved for an additional 10-20%.
The rest will be paid only if the project…
— Darab Farooqui (@darab_farooqui) February 4, 2025
