New Delhi, Jul 25 (PTI) With the success of women-centric films like "Queen", "Piku" and "Tanu Weds Manu Returns", actress Radhika Apte feels it's high time female actors were paid equal to their male counterparts.

From her roles in films like "Badlapur" and "Hunterrr" to playing a seductress in her latest short movie "Ahalya", Radhika has impressed the audiences with her diverse on-screen outings.

"Female actors are paid less than their male counterparts.

This exists everywhere not just in our industry. But there is no reason for that to exist. I understand that a lot of films so far in the industry were working because of men and there were not enough female stars on whose name a film used to run.

"Now, you have films with female-centric parts which are making Rs 100 crore. I think things will start changing now.

They should change. If women-centric films are making money, then women need to be paid better," the actress told PTI.

Radhika, 29, finds it bewildering that such inequality exists even between male and female character artists, let alone lead actors.

"This gender disparity exists even in the case of character actors. If there is male and a female actor and both are doing small roles in a film, even then the man is paid more than the woman. I don't understand that. It does not make sense. It is frustrating," she said.

The actress opts for roles which are a mix of commercial setting and substance-filled storylines.

"The barrier is breaking. There are commercial films now, which have new and great content. My choice is that. I am always open for experimentation. Deepika Padukone, Kangana Ranaut, Aditi Rao Hyadri and Richa Chadha, everybody is trying to do that, achieving that balance," Radhika said.