KUALA LUMPUR: RM1 mil is indeed a lot of money for a local drama production company to fork out.
So when a rumour that an actor from a neighbouring country is offered that whopping amount for a small screen gig, of course it didn’t augur well among local acts.
The actor in question, popular singer and actor Irwansyah when met recently denied the rumours that he had been paid that much to star in the 60-episode TV drama series, Dia.
The 32-year-old hunk instead received a salary that reflected the amount of work he had put in as the leading man in the production.
“I didn’t receive that much of money but I can say that the amount I got was well worth the three months of filming I did.”
“Actually, the experience I gained from acting in this production is more important to me than the pay itself,” he said at the launch of TV3’s drama series Dia in One Utama, Petaling Jaya yesterday.
Irwansyah who is married to fellow Indonesian actress Zaskia Sungkar, said that his wife had set some conditions for him should he decide to act in Malaysia.
“She made it clear that I couldn’t be in any kissing or hugging scenes. A little bit of touching was fine though.”
“But these are limits that I’m readily aware of, what with me being a married man and all,” he added.
The Eoon Shuhaini-directed drama, which also stars Janna Nick, Izara Aishah and Adi Putra, will begin airing on Oct 14 on TV3’s Akasia slot.
It follows the love story of Adit, played by Irwansyah, who is betrothed to Emelda (Izara) even though his heart already belongs to Aira (Janna).
The drama series, a collaboration between Orange Tree Production and Indonesian production house Limelight Pictures, saw 30 per cent of it was shot on location in Indonesia.