Rajinikanth, Lokesh Kanagaraj’s massive salaries for Coolie revealed: Report

Director Lokesh Kanagaraj’s much-awaited film Coolie with Rajinikanth in the lead will be released in theatres on 14 August. A Pinkvilla report claims that the director and actor were paid massive salaries for the film, as per a source. (Also Read: Lokesh Kanagaraj says he’s ‘not making actors sit for 3 years’ like SS Rajamouli in RRR while making multi-starrers)

Rajinikanth, Lokesh Kanagaraj’s salaries for Coolie

The publication reported that Rajinikanth took an upfront payment of ₹150 crore and Lokesh got a paycheck of ₹50 crore. It also claims that the film was made on a ₹350 crore budget. A source told them, “Rajinikanth has bagged an upfront salary of ₹150 crore for Coolie, which is among the highest of all time for an actor. Lokesh Kanagaraj on the other hand got a pay-cheque for ₹50 crore for Coolie, which is again an all-time record for a director.”

As for the rest of the budget, the source reportedly claimed, “The remaining ₹150 crore have been spent on mounting the film, alongside the fees for other members of the star-cast. The total budget of Coolie excluding print and publicity is ₹350 crore.” The publication also claimed that the producers, Sun Pictures, have set aside ₹25 crore for print and publicity, taking the total budget to ₹375 crore.

About Coolie

Coolie, directed by Lokesh and produced by Kalanithi Maran’s Sun Pictures, stars Rajinikanth in the lead role. Nagarjuna, Upendra, Soubin Shahir, Sathyaraj, Shruti Haasan, Reba Monica John, Junior MGR and Monisha Blessy make up the rest of the cast. Filming was wrapped up in March this year after its announcement in 2023. Aamir Khan has a cameo in the film. Lokesh and Chandhru Anbazhagan penned the script and dialogues for the film. Anirudh Ravichandar composed the music. 

Coolie will release in theatres on 14 August and clash with Ayan Mukherji’s Hrithik Roshan and Jr NTR-starrer War 2.