Actor helps ink a Rs 8 crore deal with cola company for his film to up the stakes at the box office against Salman Khan

It's a well-known fact that Ranbir Kapoor and Salman Khan share a history of sorts. Many years ago, Sallu bhai tore up a young RK's shirt at a disco. And this time when the makers of Ranbir's next film booked October 2 as their release date, Salman has gone ahead and decided to have his upcoming film hit the marquee on the same date.

It looks like Ranbir is in no mood to ignore the antics and has apparently come up with a plan to have Sallu sit up and take notice. With RK's help, his producers have struck a deal worth Rs 8 crore with Pepsi, a brand endorsed by the actor, to officially partner the project.

A source close to the actor states, `Salman's next film directed by Sohail Khan is slated for an October 2 release. And this was after Ranbir's producers had already secured the date as theirs. Abhinav Kashyap, who has directed RK's next, also had an alleged showdown with the Khans regarding Dabangg 2.`


Another informer close to the production states, `Ever since Salman booked October 2, Ranbir and his team have been trying everything possible to add muscle power to their project. The cola company has paid a whopping amount of Rs 8 crore to officially partner the film. This will include in-film branding and other marketing activities during its release.`

The stakes are high for Ranbir too as according to industry insiders, his next is being touted as one that caters to the masses. The source adds, `It is also an acid test for Abhinav post the Dabangg controversy.`

All we can say is that let the best man win.