Soha Ali Khan recalls paying Rs 17,000 rent on Rs 2.2 lakh salary; says Rs 5 lakh modelling deal and Rs 10 lakh Dil Maange More role shaped her career shift

Before she became an actor, Soha Ali Khan was working in finance after completing her Master’s degree from the London School of Economics and Political Science. She recently recalled that when she first moved to Mumbai, she chose to live independently in Lokhandwala even though her rent cost almost her entire salary.

Soha said in an interview with Instant Bollywood, “I wanted to live an independent life and make my own money so I could make my own decisions, so I don’t have to take directions from anyone else.” At the time, her brother Saif Ali Khan was already an established Bollywood star.

Salary of Rs 2.2 lakh vs rent of Rs 2.04 lakh

The actor revealed that she earned Rs 2,20,000 per annum at her banking job, but her rent alone was Rs 17,000 per month – almost Rs 2,04,000 annually. While the decision did not seem financially wise, Soha explained that it gave her freedom. “I was earning my own money and I didn’t have to be answerable or accountable to anyone,” she said.

At the same time, she admitted that being from the Pataudi family gave her a sense of security. “Even though I am making my own money, there is a safety net. If I need something, I can ask for it from my parents and other people don’t have that. So somewhere along the way, that gives you the confidence to take certain decisions in life.”

Considering a career change to Bollywood

Soha confessed that while she had a good job in finance, she wanted to switch to films, though she feared disappointing her parents – Sharmila Tagore and Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi. “When I was paying Rs 17,000 rent, I had a job in a bank but then I wanted to change to films, and I knew that my parents could possibly get upset with this,” she shared.

The turning point: modelling and films

The turning point came when she was offered a modelling contract worth Rs 5 lakh. Comparing it to her bank salary, Soha said, “I was going to earn Rs 5 lakh but that was for a year. Here, I was working every day to earn Rs 2.2 lakh, but there I would be working for one day and then it would be an exclusive contract for a year.”

Soon after, she bagged her debut film Dil Maange More, which paid her Rs 10 lakh. “My offer was Rs 10 lakh or something, for Dil Maange More. And that was a huge amount of money so I was thinking, I definitely want to do this and I will think about the rest later,” she recalled.

Leaving her bank job for films

Soha also mentioned that her first step towards acting came when she was offered a role in Amol Palekar’s Paheli, which later didn’t work out. By then, she had already quit her banking job and was left without a project. Eventually, things fell into place when she established herself in Bollywood.



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