MUMBAI (Reuters) - Bollywood actor Salman Khan is interested in buying a franchise in the Indian Premier League (IPL), its chief Lalit Modi said on Wednesday.

IPL vice-president Niranjan Shah told that Salman is a serious buyer and will bid for one of the two new teams. 

Niranjan Shah said, "Salman is a serious buyer and is contemplating to buy an IPL team. He came along with couple of his friends and was briefed by Lalit on the procedure to buy IPL franchise”.

Niranjan Shah further added that Ahmedabad, Nagpur and Vishakhaptanam are in race to be the new teams of Indian Premier League.

"It will be an open tender process and the city that gets the highest bidder will be the new IPL team”, he informed.

The multi-million dollar Twenty20 series, which features almost all top international players, has also gained popularity for its entertainment element -- Bollywood superstars Shah Rukh Khan, Preity Zinta and Shilpa Shetty all own IPL teams.

Salman Khan met Modi on Wednesday to explore how he could join the bandwagon.

"He is aware of the price of a franchise, which will be between $200 to $300 million," Modi told television channel CNN-IBN, adding that two new franchises would be up for sale by January.

"He has been keen for some time now, so he was curious about the process of auctions and the money involved," Modi added. 

Ever since its inception two years ago, IPL has proved to be a money spinner, raking in millions of dollars in advertising and ticket revenues.

The celebrities the tournament attracts, combining Indian passion for film and cricket, has further boosted its profile.

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