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The Unfair Advantage Platform
Fair Pay benchmark

What crew actually charge.

Producers know the number. Agencies know it. You are the one left guessing. This is the honest picture of what India's film and ad crew charge, by craft, experience and city. No names. No individual fees. Just the real ranges.

Founding 50

The first 50crew to drop their professional fee set the founding benchmark for India's film and ad crew. 1 in, 49 spots left. Anonymous, 60 seconds.

1/50
Fee basis
172
fees in the benchmark
18
crafts · per day
₹31,500
median · per day
₹1,500–₹2,80,500
full range

What each craft charges

The box is the middle half (25th to 75th percentile); the line is the median; the whiskers are the full low-to-high range. Hover a row for the numbers.

Coloristn6
median ₹83,000
Production Designern6
median ₹73,250
Producern8
median ₹63,500
VFX / Motionn4
median ₹55,000
Art Directorn7
median ₹47,500
Cinematographer (DOP)n12
median ₹42,000
Directorn11
median ₹33,500
Photographern12
median ₹33,000
Stylistn4
median ₹32,750
Line Producern6
median ₹32,750
Graphic Designern8
median ₹27,500
Photo Editor / Retouchern6
median ₹27,250
Sound Designern7
median ₹25,000
Editorn12
median ₹24,750
Copywritern8
median ₹24,250
Voice Artistn7
median ₹21,000
Assistant Directorn13
median ₹14,500
Gaffern12
median ₹12,250

What experience is worth

Median per day, by years in the craft.

Emerging (0–2 yrs)n25
₹7,000
Working (3–5 yrs)n40
₹15,250
Established (6–10 yrs)n45
₹36,000
Senior (10+ yrs)n39
₹74,500

By city

Median per day, top cities.

Mumbain54
₹33,500
Delhin28
₹27,500
Bengalurun25
₹33,500
Goan14
₹19,250
Punen12
₹31,500
Chennain10
₹32,000

The picture is filling in

Submissions per day. 172 so far.

1
4
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5
8
10
4
8
5
3
10
4
3
6
4
3
12
10
8
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11
14
19
2026-05-272026-06-20

Every fee makes this sharper. Add yours, anonymously, in 60 seconds.

Add your professional fee →

Anonymous · aggregated · no individual fees shown

Fair pay in India, answered

How much do film crew charge per day in India?+

It ranges widely by craft, experience and city. Entry-level crew may charge a few thousand rupees a day, while senior cinematographers, directors and designers on ad films can command well into six figures. The TUAP Fair Pay benchmark shows the real anonymous medians and ranges per craft, updated as crew submit their rates.

What is a typical cinematographer (DOP) day rate in India?+

A cinematographer's day rate depends heavily on the project type (ad, film, web series, wedding) and their experience and city. Rather than a single number, the benchmark shows the live low-to-high range and median for DOPs from the crew themselves. Add your own rate to sharpen it.

How is the Fair Pay benchmark calculated?+

From self-reported, anonymous rate submissions, aggregated into medians and percentiles grouped by craft, experience level and city. No individual rates, names or identifying details are ever shown. Low-sample groups are flagged as indicative.

Is the benchmark free to use?+

Yes. The Fair Pay benchmark is free and open to everyone. Adding your own rate is anonymous and takes about 60 seconds.

Why are Indian film and creative crew often underpaid?+

Pay is opaque, so clients anchor to the cheapest quote they have seen and crew guess in the dark, usually low. A shared, honest benchmark removes that information gap, so crew can price with confidence and producers can budget fairly.

Method: medians and percentiles, grouped by craft, experience and city. While the survey is young, ranges are anchored with market-research estimates and replaced by real crew submissions as they arrive; the benchmark becomes fully crew-reported once 50+ fees are in. Low-sample groups (n1–n2) are indicative, not gospel. The picture sharpens as more crew add their professional fee.