"The Baadshah" Shah Rukh Khan was once again India's highest-paid celebrity last year.
Indian movie superstars Shah Rukh Khan, Salman Khan and Akshay Kumar have all landed places among the top 100 in FORBES’ 2017 list of the world’s highest-paid entertainers. The Celebrity 100 measures earnings from June 1, 2016 to June 1, 2017, before taxes and management fees.
According to the newly published rankings, the Indian actors’ respective rankings are:
| Overall Rank | Name | 12-Month Earnings |
| 65 | Shah Rukh Khan | $38 million |
| 71 | Salman Khan | $37 million |
| 80 | Akshay Kumar | $35.5 million |
All three have appeared on the list in past years as well.
American musicians Diddy and Beyoncé topped the list with respective earnings of $130 million and $105 million. British author J.K. Rowling ranked third with $95 million in income.
Chinese actor Jackie Chan was the highest paid Asian celebrity, ranking No. 39 with $49 million in earnings last year.
Nearly all of the top 50 on the celebrity list were North Americans or Brits, with only Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo (No. 5), Argentina’s Lionel Messi (No. 14), Switzerland’s Roger Federer (No. 23) and Chan cracking the top ranks of the predominantly native English-speaking celebrity elite.
Shah Rukh Khan’s ranking represented a jump of 21 places over last year, when he ranked No. 76 on the list with $33 million in pay. Akshay Kumar popped up 14 spots from last year’s No. 94 ranking and $33 million in income.
In 2015 Amitabh Bachchan and Salman Khan were the highest ranking Indians at No. 71 and No. 72, with $33.5 million each in earnings. Akshay Kumar was close behind at No. 76, with $32.5 million, and cricket star Mahendra Singh Dhoni landed at No. 82, with $31 million.
Shah Rukh Khan’s earnings derive from a variety of sources including his film acting salary, his producing fees from his Red Chillies Entertainment banner, TV hosting, endorsements, live stage tours, and ownership in various businesses including the cricket team the Kolkata Knight Riders of the India Premier League. He has been waggishly called an "ever-present celebrity," with two or three films a year, constant and ubiquitous television ads, print ads and gigantic billboards lining the streets of Indian cities. He is the object of an often fanatical following, with a fan base estimated to exceed 1 billion.
The number one spot went to perennial list-dweller Diddy, a music artist, producer and entrepreneur. His top-ranking payday came largely from his sale of a share of his Sean John clothing equity and his ongoing partnership with Diageo's Ciroc vodka.
Next year’s list looks to be the first time that Bollywood star Aamir Khan will join the ranks of the Celebrity 100. With his film Dangal now ensconced as the highest-grossing Indian movie in history, his profit-sharing from that film alone should exceed $40 million, which would likely place him first among Indian celebrities on the 2018 list.
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