Payscale should not depend on a person's sex: Aamir Khan on disparity

Aamir Khan has always been a thinking man's actor. His strong viewpoints and quotes often land him in more trouble than he would like. Speaking at a discussion panel, The Indian Futurescape, the actor stated that it is high time the pay disparity between male and female actors in the Hindi film industry changed. Offering his support to the growing voices, Aamir said, "Payscale should not depend on a person's sex. It should be equal. Patriarchal mindset should change."

This quote comes in the wake of several actors like Anushka Sharma, Priyanka Chopra and Shah Rukh Khan speaking against the existing system. 

Sharma had previously spoken about the issue saying, "Discrimination is there not only in terms of money, but in general as well. When you are shooting outdoors, you know the actor is going to get a better and bigger room."

Even Chopra, the golden girl of India's exports, quipped at a magazine launch, "As much as there is a huge pay disparity between male actors and female actors, it is also in society. The disparity is not just in the film industry, it is a disparity of genders in society in general." 

Aamir recent quote is a sign of the changing times. However, the opinion is not very common among the male actors in the industry. Among the few, Shah Rukh has also spoken out by saying, "I feel every woman in this industry works three times harder than the men and gets 10 times lesser the money." This silence on the part of male actors has long been viewed as an effort to maintain the gap. Though powerful, Aamir and Shah Rukh's voices are still among the minority. 

Aamir's recent statement might go some way to change opinions in this matter.