Junior NTR's Bigg Boss remuneration: Telugu star only next to Salman Khan; gets more than Kamal Haasan, Sudeep

Junior NTR is foraying into the small screen by stepping in anchor's shoes of the first season of Bigg Boss Telugu. He is the latest Tollywood celebrity after Chiranjeevi and Nagarjuna to be attracted by the reach of the television medium. His first assignment as the host will be aired on MAA TV.

Here is the interesting part of the story. Junior NTR has become the highest-paying celebrity in the Bigg Boss franchise after Salman Khan. He will be part of 30 episodes for which he is being paid a bomb. If the latest buzz is to be believed, the Young Tiger is drawing a whopping Rs 25 crore to host Bigg Boss Telugu.

It means Junior NTR is getting bigger paycheque than his counterparts like Kamal Haasan and Kiccha Sudeep who reportedly earn Rs 15 crore and Rs 5 crore respectively to host the Tamil and Kannada versions of Bigg Boss show. Salman Khan is way ahead of the Young Tiger as he is estimated to be getting around Rs 6-8 crore per episode alone for hosting the Hindi version of Bigg Boss, which has a bigger reach than the South Indian editions. 

Junior NTR has a huge fan base and the reality show is expected to draw viewership from Telugu-speaking audience from across the world. Hence, the actor is being paid such a big figure, say industry insiders.  

"Television is one of the biggest mediums for entertainment. When I was approached to host 'Bigg Boss', the biggest ever show on Telugu Television, I was intrigued by the challenge. I believe that the show will be a game changer", Junior NTR said in a statement.

Bigg Boss in the Indian adaptation of international reality show, Big Brother. The Hindi and Kannada versions have become popular TV shows among their fans. The Tamil and Telugu versions are entering the market this year.

While the Hindi version has successfully completed 10 seasons, the Kannada Bigg Boss is four-year-old. The Tamil version will start its airing from June 25.