MID-DAY (May 5, 2016)

An outsized price tag for music made headlines two years ago when makers of Salman Khan-starrer Prem Ratan Dhan Payo struck a Rs 17- crore deal with T-Series even before the film had gone on floors. Now, Abhishek Chaubey’s crime thriller Udta Punjab has shattered that record — its music rights have been sold to the same music label for, hold your breath, Rs 18 crore! “This makes it the biggest music deal in the history of Bollywood,” claims a source close to the project which stars Shahid Kapoor, Alia Bhatt, Kareena Kapoor Khan and Punjabi superstar Diljit Dosanjh.

The music has been scored by Amit Trivedi. “The last time we heard of a record-setting contract was for Prem Ratan Dhan Payo, which is a crore less than this one. The Udta Punjab album has a new age Punjabi vibe to it and the makers hope to strike a chord with music lovers,” adds the source. The first song of Udta Punjab was released yesterday; it is picturised on Shahid, who looks every bit of a whacky, drug-addict.

The film’s spokesperson confirms about the multi-crore deal being cracked.