Canada-born Bollywood actor-dancer Nora Fatehi, known for her popular dance hits, recently disclosed that she wasn’t paid for her breakthrough songs like “Dilbar” and “Kamariya,” despite struggling financially at the time.
Fatehi, a top performer with chart-toppers like “Dilbar,” “Kamariya,” “O Saki Saki,” “Kusu Kusu,” and “Manike,” shared that she faced exploitation early in her career, working without pay for some of these hit numbers, even though she could barely afford food or rent.
In a recent interview, Fatehi, who had been trying to make her mark in India since 2014, said she considered leaving the country before her big breaks in 2018. When approached for these roles, she decided to work for free, seeing it as a chance to establish herself rather than earn money immediately. “When I met the creators of these songs… I did them for free,” she explained. “It wasn’t the time to make money but to prove myself and work with reputable people.”
Fatehi recalled being nearly penniless before filming the songs, describing a period of malnutrition due to lack of funds and citing financial exploitation by a modeling agency that misused foreign models like herself.
Currently, Fatehi awaits the release of her debut Telugu film Matka, starring Varun Tej and Meenakshi Chaudhary, and was recently featured in actor Kunal Khemu’s directorial debut, Madgaon Express.
