Buzz is, Kajol is no longer in contention for a TV show thanks to her astronomical fee. Even stars are not recession proof. There was a time when Bollywood A-listers stepping into the small screen would quote and get any price they wished. But in a failing economy, even television channels who want to oblige, are eventually forced to say “no”. A recent case in point is Kajol, who was on Rensil D’ Silva’s wish list for the 27-episode fiction show he was co-scripting with Priya Pinto.

Kajol was reportedly bowled over by the woman-centric subject revolving around a single mother living in an extended joint family in Delhi. But her telly debut came at a premium. According to a source close to the development, the actress allegedly demanded a whopping Rs 15 crore plus. “After a long meeting with the channel and the producer, she was offered one-third the amount, but Kajol wasn’t willing to take the cut.” Last heard, there was talk of Aishwarya Rai Bachchan being approached.

The show’s producer Siddharth Malhotra however denied the development saying, “We have not approached Kajol for my show and we don’t know Aishwarya Rai personally. The show that Rensil has worked on has been put on hold since the past six months by the channel.”