Deepika Padukone finds spot in world's highest paid actresses list

Los Angeles, Aug 24  Bollywood actress Deepika Padukone, who is set to make her Hollywood debut, has already landed a spot in a list of the world's highest paid actresses, with earnings of $10 million. The list also features heavyweights like Hollywood stars Jennifer Lawrence, Julia Roberts and Jennifer Aniston.

Deepika, daughter of India's celebrated badminton player Prakash Padukone, is the only newcomer to the 'World's Highest-Paid Actresses' ranking and is the only Indian star to make the cut. She has found the tenth spot in the list, which is topped by Lawrence.

Of the 10 list members, 30 per cent, including Padukone, hail from outside the US. Chinese actress Fan Bingbing was also featured in the list for the second consecutive year, while Charlize Theron, a dual South African-American citizen, returned to the list for the first time since 2013, reported forbes.com.

For the second year in a row, Lawrence became the world's highest paid actress with $46 million earning while Melissa McCarthy was in the second spot by pocketing $33 million.

Lawrence's impressive earnings consist largely of a profit slice from the big box office gross of her final “Hunger Games” instalment and a mammoth upfront fee for “Passengers”. 

As for Deepika, who will soon be making her Hollywood debut along "Fast and Furious" star Vin Diesel in "xXx: Return of Xander Cage", she earns far less than her Hollywood counterparts for roles, but compensates with over a dozen lucrative endorsements.

The magazine also put the spotlight on the gender pay gap in the Indian film industry, stating that "though a top male star might earn close to $5 million a movie, prominent Indian actresses rarely clear $1 million a film", adding that "it's a discrepancy not uncommon in Hollywood". 

Other names to feature in the list include Mila Kunis, Amy Adams and Scarlett Johansson. 

What may come as a surprise to many is that there was no mention of actress Priyanka Chopra, who is making waves in the west, be it for her American TV series "Quantico" or her Hollywood debut film "Baywatch".