Notables Not on Celebrity 100

Javed Akhtar
He was hailed in creative circles for his efforts in getting the Copyright Act amended in May 2012. He also penned the lyrics for Ekk Deewana Tha. But he doesn’t feature in the Celebrity 100 because there was no specific category for lyricists.

Irrfan Khan
Despite all the accolades he received for his path breaking Paan Singh Tomar, he is underpaid compared to other stars. In addition, he has only one big brand endorsement: Vodafone.

Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy
Of late, their form seems to have dropped, and Don 2: The Chase Continues is their only film that falls within our time period. On the ‘fame’ counter, the trio’s fan following on social media is limited.

Sourav Ganguly
He’s going through a career transition. He wasn’t picked for IPL 5, thus missing out on dizzying sums of money. While he is still able to attract endorsement deals as a cricket analyst, they are nowhere close to what he would have got earlier.

R Madhavan
A big name down South, he acted in two films, Jodi Breakers (Hindi) and Vettai (Tamil), but had only one endorsement deal (Maruti Wagon R) to his name, making his earnings fall short of the cut off.

Kabir Khan
His directorial venture, Ek Tha Tiger, became the highest-grossing film of the year. But much of the limelight was hogged by lead actor Salman Khan and production house Yash Raj. He loses out on the ‘fame’ factor.

Mammootty
This hugely successful Malayalam actor had five films in our time frame. But he misses on account of low compensation compared to his Tamil and Telugu peers. Also he has no brand endorsements.

Anurag Basu
His earnings from Barfi! were modest and he’s still among the second rung of directors. He’s also below par on the ‘fame’ factor, as his fan following on social media is not as large as that of his peers.

Jeet Thayil
His book Narcopolis made it to several prestigious prize short-lists, and therefore would have pushed up sales as well as press mentions. But all of this happened outside the time period considered for the list.

Image: Javed Akhtar: Will Ragozzino / Getty Images; Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy: DELSTR / Getty Images; Sourav Ganguly: Mike Clarke / Getty Images; Kabir Khan: Yogen Shah / Getty Images; Anurag Basu: Jessica Rinaldi / Reuters


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Shobhaa De
She made a publishing record in 2005 when her book Spouse sold 20,000 copies on the day of its release. Her latest book Sethji—a novel woven around the murky world of Indian politics—may not rock the book charts, but given her ability to hit the limelight for multiple reasons, she might just make it to the list next year.

Salman Rushdie
His much talked-about memoir Joseph Anton was released outside the time frame considered for the list. Also, his book sales overseas (not considered for the list) are huge, outweighing India sales.

Kamal Haasan
The fact that Kamal Haasan did not have any releases last year kept him out of the list. He was busy making and promoting his upcoming release, Vishwaroopam. Although his attempts to release it on the DTH platform and in theatres at the same time failed, the film is expected to ensure his position on the list next year.

Rajinikanth
His last release, Enthiran, was way back in 2010, the reason he’s not on the Celebrity 100 list. But he is expected in next year’s list as his film Kochadaiyaan is expected to release later in 2013. As his famous line goes: “Latea vandhalum, latestaa varuven (I might come late, but I will be the latest).”



Watch Out for Them
They are making a mark, and soon might make the cut

Amit Trivedi
He’s a rising star. His music for Kai Po Che (based on Chetan Bhagat’s The 3 Mistakes of My Life), which releases in February, is already making waves. The track ‘Manjha’, sung by Trivedi, is the toast of the town. His catchy tunes and experiments with new voices make him one of the most exciting music composers of today.

Ayushmann Khurrana
He made a successful transition from the small screen to the silver screen with Vicky Donor, which became a sleeper hit. Besides playing the protagonist, he penned lyrics, scored music and lent his voice to the popular Pani Da Rang. Watch out him in his next release, Nautanki Saala.

Anirudh Ravichander
This young musician from Chennai shot to instant fame with Kolaveri Di, which became an internet sensation. He has scored music for two films since: David (one of the most awaited releases of 2013) and Ethir Neechal. He can be expected to make the cut next year.

Ajinkya Rahane
This 24-year-old batsman is making big strides. Following the poor form of India’s senior players, fans demand this right-hander be picked for the Test and ODI side. He’s sure to be hot property in this year’s IPL auction and may well be picked up by a bigger franchise.

(Compiled by NS Ramnath)

Image: Shobhaa De: Sameer Joshi / Fotocorp; Kamal Hassan: Getty Images; Rajnikanth: Miguel Medina / Getty Images; Ayushmann Khurrana: Sunil Shirsekar / Fotocorp