Highest-paid TV hosts in India: Bollywood star Salman Khan set to earn Rs3500 million for next ‘Bigg Boss’ season

Bollywood actor Salman Khan is all set to return as the host of the upcoming 15th season of ‘Bigg Boss’. Reportedly, the veteran actor is charging a whopping Rs350 crore (Dh174 million) for the season, and the show is expected to run for 14 weeks. Khan has been the host of the Indian adaptation of the reality TV show ‘Big Brother’ for over a decade and the Hindi version of the show has come to be associated with the actor.

Inspired by ‘Who Wants To Be A Millionaire’, ‘Kaun Banega Crorepati’, hosted by the legendary actor Amitabh Bachchan soon became one of the most popular quiz shows in India. Reportedly, Bachchan took home Rs25 Lakhs (Dh124.6k) per episode during the first season and as the popularity of the show grew, the actor's earnings increased to a staggering Rs3.5 crores (Dh1.74 million) per episode by Season 11.

After a bit of a bumpy ride thanks to his off-screen antics, comic Kapil Sharma has returned to the TV screen with a series called ‘The Kapil Sharma Show’, where celebrities drop by to chat – and promote their own upcoming projects. Sharma reportedly earns about Rs. 3-3.5 million per episode and is all set to demand even more, if news reports are to be believed.

Shilpa Shetty Kundra has been in the news for a number of reasons, but the once-winner of ‘Bigg Boss’ makes this particular list for her reality TV revenue stream. Turns out the small screen format really does work for her. She’s done shows including ‘Nach Baliye’, ‘Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa’ and ‘Zara Nachke Dikha’, and for ‘SuperDancer’ she took home Rs14 crores for the first season.

Karan Johar is a celebrity even in an industry full of celebrities. No wonder he gets to take home a giant paycheck. It was reported that he took home Rs100 million for every season of ‘Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa’. Karan Johar recently the hosted of the first season of Bigg Boss OTT.

Hrithik Roshan, an actor known for his prowess on the dance stage, reportedly charged Rs.2O million per episode for his participation in ‘Just Dance’.

Salman’s brother Sohail Khan hasn’t really been in the limelight for a while, but the last time he did was on the small screen as a judge on Comedy Circus. It is reported that he charged Rs 30 million for every season.