Fellow actor Salman Khan (Rs. 202.75) is in second place with Amitabh Bachchan (Rs. 112 crore) in third spot. The list also comprises authors, comedians, directors, singers/musicians and TV personalities.
Kohli, who earned Rs. 58.43 crore in 2014, is still behind fourth-placed M.S. Dhoni (Rs. 119.33 crore), but the ODI and Twenty20 skipper’s earnings have fallen by nearly 20 per cent from Rs. 141.8 crore in 2014.
“Dhoni’s stock has fallen vis-à-vis last year as he announced his retirement (from Test cricket in December 2014). His proximity to embattled former BCCI chief N. Srinivasan has not gone down well with fans either. Another reason could be that the Chennai Super Kings, the IPL team that he leads, stands suspended for two years in connection with a betting and match-fixing scandal,” Forbes Indiasaid in a statement released to The Hindu.
Tendulkar eighth
Batting maestro Sachin Tendulkar, who continues to rake in the moolah even after retirement, occupies the eighth place with a pay cheque of Rs. 40 crore.
Forbes India, the Indian edition of the iconic American business magazine, estimates income from endorsements in addition to professional fees, and also calculates a celebrity’s ‘fame quotient’ to arrive at the final list.
Batsman Rohit Sharma is in 12th place. He earned Rs. 17.71 crore as against Rs. 19.63 crore in 2014. However, his ‘fame rank’ went up to eight from 32, ensuring him a slot in the top 20. His world-record score of 264 in ODIs and news about his decision to settle down helped bump up his popularity. Rohit occupied the 50th spot last year.
Shikhar Dhawan (No. 16), Suresh Raina (No. 20), Yuvraj Singh (No. 21), Ajinkya Rahane (No. 25), R. Ashwin (No. 31), Virender Sehwag (No. 35), Ravindra Jadeja (No. 41), Ishant Sharma (No. 48), Harbhajan Singh (No. 49) and Gautam Gambhir (No. 50) are the other cricketers to have made the cut.
Tennis ace Sania Mirza (No. 38) is the top-ranked non-cricketer and one of only three sportswomen in the list. The Hyderabad player, whose partnership with Martina Hingis propelled her to the top spot in the women’s doubles rankings, earned Rs. 13.25 crore. Badminton star Saina Nehwal has Rs. 16.99 crore to show for her efforts on and off the court, but she finds herself a spot below Sania. Boxer M.C. Mary Kom occupies the 62nd spot with earnings of Rs. 9.75 crore.
Tennis great Leander Paes (No. 85), golfer Anirban Lahiri (No. 90), national football team captain Sunil Chetri (No. 92) and tennis pro Rohan Bopanna (No. 93) have also made the list.