India's highest-paid singer earns 3 crore per song, only sings 'part-time'; it's not Arijit, Sonu Nigam, Shreya Ghoshal
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Lata Mangeshkar created quite the stir in Bollywood in the 60s when she demanded the same remuneration as lyricists and composers in films. Singers were popular but were not paid much. The likes of Mohammed Rafi and Manna Dey charged ₹300 per song at the time. But courtesy of Lata's stand, things changed. As albums gave way to YouTube, eventually streaming, the importance of singers grew manifold. Today, the biggest singers in India can charge lakhs for each song. And yet, one man, who is not even a 'full-time; singer, dwarfs them all.
India's highest-paid singer
AR Rahman is currently the highest-paid singer in India. As per multiple reports, confirmed by industry insiders, Rahman charges a princely sum of up to ₹3 crore for each song he lends his voice to. This is 12-15 times the amount charged by any other singer in India. According to sources, Rahman charges this premium to discourage composers from approaching him. Since he wants to focus on his composition, Rahman almost always sings only his own songs. But whenever he does lend his voice to someone else's composition, the producer has to pay him that premium.
Other highest-paid singers of India
Among 'full-time' singers, Shreya Ghoshal remains the highest-paid in India. The 40-year-old reportedly charges ₹25 lakh per song she records. Shreya is followed by her contemporary Sunidhi Chauhan in the third spot, who charges between ₹18-20 lakh per song. Arijit Singh also charges the same amount, as per sources.
Sonu Nigam rounds up the top five with a reported fee of ₹15-18 lakh for one song. According to reports, rapper Badshah and singer Diljit Dosanjh have hiked up their fees in recent years and may threaten to enter the top five soon.
