Mumbai, April 5 (IANS): Filmmaker Sriram Raghavan, whose "Badlapur", made a budget of Rs.25 crore, was appreciated by audience and critics alike, says the pressure to deliver increases with a big star and bigger budget.

"Badlapur" starred Varun Dhawan, in what the four-film-old actor called his "lowest budget" film.

Asked if a big budget film puts more pressure on a filmmaker, Raghavan told IANS: "Yes, it does affect because the more the budget, the bigger the star, the more pressure you have. The question is how to return the money."

"Having said that, I also believe stars certainly help the film in many ways. Their reach is more, so you get a bigger opening because of them," added the filmmaker, whose past credits include films like "Ek Hasina Thi" and "Johnny Gaddar".

For "Badlapur", he says he did not need a star.

"When I signed Varun for 'Badlapur', he was just one film old. Now he has become a big star. This certainly helped our film that Varun is a star now," he said.