Top 10 South Indian Actress Salary (Updates 2020-2021)

With the growing regional film industries, the nationwide audience is paying more attention to the South heroines. In fact, these top 10 South Indian actress salary per movie are much higher than many Bollywood stars.

The figures below are taken from their highest remuneration in recent hits which add a fortune to their wealth. Some familiar names maintain the top positions but their ranks changed a little bit.

1. Nayanthara – Rs 4.5 crore

Known as the lady superstar of regional cinema, Nayanthara officially leads the top 10 highest paid South Indian actress 2020.

Having acted in over 75 movies across Tamil, Telugu or Malayalam theatres, Nayanthara salary per movie never disappoints her fans

Reports have it that Nayanthara earned up to Rs 4.5 crore for the horror flick Airaa in 2019. This is also her highest remuneration rate recorded till now. Before that, the South Indian superstar is also famous for charging Rs 3-4 crore per movie.

2. Anushka Shetty – Rs 3-5 crore

Anushka Shetty probably rose to the top of this list if her remuneration for Bahubali 2 were confirmed. However, there isn’t any official source for the information.

According to some reports, Anushka Shetty got paid up to 5 crore for her role in the second installment of Prabhus blockbuster. However, others said she was only given 3 crore for the movie.

In 2020, Anushka Shetty was rumored to get married to the divorcee Prakash Kovelamudi. Netizens even calculated their combined net worth of $29 million if the wedding took place for real. However, the speculations were refuted by the actress herself.

3. Samantha Akkineni – Rs 3.5 crore

Coming in third place on the list of top 10 South Indian actress salary is Samantha Ruth Prabhu or Samantha Akkineni.

After her latest movie Jaanu in 2020, Samantha Akkineni hasn’t signed any film yet. However, reliable reports wrote that the actress quoted Rs 3.5 crore per movie when Telugu filmmakers approached her. This clearly deterred many producers to seek for other alternatives as they couldn’t afford Samantha’s remuneration.

4. Keerthy Suresh – Rs 3 crore

Keerthy Suresh's salary hits a sharp rise after the commercial success Sarkar. From 1.5 crore for her previous movie, Keerthy Suresh was paid Rs 3 crore for her role in Sarkar.

This number is understandable given her growing popularity and influence in South Indian film industries. In 2020, Keerthy Suresh announced her two big projects, one with legendary Rajinikanth and another with Mahesh Babu. The two movies Annaatthe and Sarkaru Vaari Paata are among many other Telugu and Malayalam films Keerthy will join in 2021.

5. Pooja Hegde – Rs 2.5 crore

In October 2020, Pooja Hegde was reported to surpass Anushka Shetty to become the highest-paid actress in Tollywood. After her role in a Allu-Arjun starrer, she earned herself Rs 2.5 crore despite a 20% cut in paycheck due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Having said that, please note that the title should only be inferred within the year 2020 only as Anushka Shetty’s salary for Bahubali 2 was around 3 crore in 2017. In 2020, Anushka didn’t have any major project that could grant her such a whopping amount of remuneration.

6. Kajal Aggarwal – Rs 2 crore

Being the first South Indian actress to have a wax statue in Madame Tussauds museum, Kajal Aggarwal must have a place in top 10 highest paid South Indian actresses in 2020.

As 2020 is not a year of career, Kajal Aggarwal's salary remained at Rs 2 crore per movie. However, in the near future, the audience will see more of Kajal on screen in different languages.

Her upcoming movies include the Telugu film Mosagallu, Hindi action Mumbai Saga and Tamil action thriller Indian 2. She will co-star with big names in the industry such as Suniel Shetty, Vishnu Manchu, John Abraham, and Kamal Hassan.

7. Shruti Haasan – Rs 1.5 crore

The next name in top South Indian female actors is the stylish Shruti Haasan, daughter of veteran actor Kamal Haasan.

In fact, Shruti Haasan used to get a lot more some years ago at the peak of her career. However, the lack of blockbusters in recent years plus the gloomy situation for the entire industry in 2020, Shruti remuneration did suffer.

A recent report from Times Of India stated that even when Shruti Haasan demanded high paycheck according to several filmmakers, the number didn’t exceed Rs 1.5 crore.

8. Tamannaah Bhatia – Rs 1.5 crore

Rising to fame after a number of commercial hits in 2017, 2018 such as Bahubali 2 or K.G.F: Chapter 1, Tamannaah Bhatia enjoyed a hike in her remuneration. However, during the last two years, her movies were not doing well at the box office, which prevented Tamannaah’s salary from increasing further.

In 2020, some reports claimed Tamannaah quoted Rs 2.5 crore for Trinadh Rao’s comedy-drama. The result was the producers and the South Indian star couldn’t reach an agreement. However, Tamannaah refuted the rumours and said the two sides were much in touch.

As far as we know, Tamannaah Bhatia salary per movie in 2021 is around Rs 1.5 crore that is the same as her best friend Shruti Haasan.

9. Rakul Preet Singh – Rs 1.5 crore

Rakul Preet Singh is named among the most beautiful South Indian actresses at the moment. Having her debut in 2009, the starlet then gradually affirmed her talent in a number of Tamil and Telugu films. She also joined several Hindi projects which gained positive feedback from the audience.

Regarding her increasing influence in the South Indian film industry, Rakul Preet Singh quotes Rs 1.5 crore per movie as latest updated. She is finishing her various projects in Telugu, Hindi and Tamil languages. In 2021, you will see her in Attack, Krish, Indian 2, and Ayalaan at least.

With all those Rakul Preet Singh best movies and more to come, we predict her salary will go much higher in the years to come.

10. Shriya Saran – Rs 1.5 crore

Compared to some other ladies in this highest-paid South Indian actresses list, Shriya Saran might have less movies, but she won many privilege awards for her excellent performance.

During a decade from 2008 to 2018, Shriya Saran had won 9 awards for Best Actress and Best Supporting Actress in different events. Box office hits that could be linked to her name include Gautamiputra Satakarni, Manam, or Kanthaswamy.

Since she got married to Andrei Koscheev, she hasn’t signed any new project. However, she’s still listed among top South Indian female actors with a remuneration rate of Rs 1.5 crore.

Above are top 10 South Indian actress salary in 2021. We will keep updating the information if there is any change. For your reference, the below video features top 10 South Indian heroines that got highest salaries in 2019. See who's in and out the list compared to this year!

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