Starring : Salman Khan, Anushka Sharma,Amit Sadh, Urvashi Rautela, Randeep Hooda,Anant sharma
Producer : Aditya Chopra
Director : Ali Abbas Zafar
Music : Vishal - Shekhar
Review by : Kriti Agarwal
Rating : 3.5 out of 5

What's about : '' Wrestling is about fighting what lies within '' is the message in the 170 minutes .

Sultan is a cocktail of sportsmanship , emotion, action, love,patriotism and of course Salman Khan. It is a love story with a coat of wrestling! Lifestyles and the spirit of Akhadas of the smaller towns of India are captured well.

It is a biopic of a Wrestler named Sultan, from Haryana.
In spite of being a Bhai film, it showcases the woman’s cause ,posters plastered on the village homes —
1 - 'beti bachao abhiyan' in the backdrop of Haryana, infamous for female foeticide and a lopsided sex ratio.
2 -“yahi vachan hai sabse achcha, rahe surakshit jachha bachha'' (the best vow is that mother and new born should both remain safe)”
3 - “ghar mein shauchalaya banwayein, bahu beti baahar na jaayein (build toilets at home so that women don’t have to venture out)”,
4 - “beti maaroge toh bahu kaha se laaoge?” (If you kill your daughters, where will you find brides?) .

Sultan names his son Aman, because the violent world needs some peace.

Not a single shot of a temple is seen nor a single call of the muezzin heard nor a single speech delivered , reminding us gently that minority communities need not be mere narrative devices, and that a lesson on secularism need not be stated in black and white to be heard.

Location : 360 year old Jama masjid in Delhi, Muzaffarnagar [UP] , Narangwal & Kila raipur villages of Ludhiana and Doraha [ punjab]

Story : When the chips are down, Sultan's wife Aarfa (Anushka Sharma), a fellow wrestler and daughter of his first coach Barkat Hussain (Kumud Mishra), reminds him: "We are sportsmen, we never give up." The wheel of a tractor gets stuck in a deep puddle outside the office where retired Olympic and world champion Sultan does a lowly clerical job. The hero is summoned to the spot and he pulls the vehicle out without batting an eyelid.

Sultan's MMA [Mixed Martial Arts] coach Fateh Singh (Randeep Hooda) advises him to aspire to be an "unbreakable bull". When Sultan does become one, the coach exults: "Poora saand (bull) hai."

Sports entrepreneur Akash Oberoi (Amit Sadh), owner of the wrestling franchise Pro Take-Down who has arrived from Delhi, is impressed enough with the deed to rope in Sultan as the floundering event's only Indian fighter.

Trying to outrun a diesel locomotive is a part of a punishing training regimen .

It takes an awful amount of time and endless bone-crunching for that realization to dawn upon him.
The wrestling bouts are Olympic style. Then they get rougher as a "chutney of martial arts" - kick boxing, capoeira and taekwondo, among others - is thrown in to spice up the action.

Aarfa reminds us exactly of Mary Kom.
In the end, Sultan remains a Salman Khan vehicle, pure and simple, gift-wrapped for his constituency of filmgoers.

Point to note: The character ‘Sultan’ is a fan of Shah Rukh Khan. Not sure if this was deliberate.

Postscript: The Censors got the producers to cut out the words “pant mein” (in your pants) and replace them with “paas mein” (with you), in the sentence “Apni mardani ko apni pant mein daba kar rakho” (keep your manhood in your pants).

Characters :
Salman Khan [ Sultan ali khan] : sports >> a cat-that-got-the-cream look all through the film. It is heightened by a roll of the moustache every time he triumphs over an opponent.
Definitely worked hard on attaining that body and he needs . At 50, watching him wrestle, dance, romance and emote with such ease is a big delight . From playing a done-and-dusted homegrown wrestler, to a wonder-boy of freestyle fighting, you see Salman put up a great performance . Wolf-whistles and claps greet every minute of Salman's time in the pit.
Anushka sharma [ Aarfa] : a versatile actress, surprisingly good chemistry with Salman.
Randeep Hooda [Sultan's coach]: did a fabulous job in a special appearance. His arrogance suited him in his ferocious role. wish there was a little more Randeep in the film!
Amit sadh [ Sultan's brother] : got a noticeable screen space.
fits quite seamlessly in cameo role.
Sultan's friend Govind (Anant Sharma), who stands by his buddy through broken heart and crushed rib,is charming throughout.

Fans enjoy the parts :
1 -when past-his-prime Sultan slouches before a mirror and inspects his paunch ,then struggles to get into a slim-fit shirt.
2 - when, in a dargah, he launches into a mournful monologue to appeal to his estranged wife to let bygones be bygones...
3 - when he does his limited dance steps with exactly the kind of abandon that endears him to his fans.

TRIVIA :
1. It is Salman Khan's first film with Anushka Sharma.
2.The film was all set to clash with Shah Rukh's 'Raees' but the release of 'Raees' was pushed to January 2017.
3.Deepika Padukone, Parineeti Chopra and Kriti Sanon were being considered to play the female lead opposite Salman before Anushka Sharma bagged the role.
4. Salman Khan, while talking about grueling shoot of the film, said, "When I used to walk out of that ring, it used to be actually like a raped woman walking out….I couldn’t take steps." For his remark, Salman received a lot of flak . National Commission for Women sent a notice asking for apology. His father Salim Khan apologised publically for Salman's remarks.

Some of the best scenes:
Sultan’s first match ,
Sultan during the semi-finals
Sultan’s entry
Sultan chases the kite
Sultan asks Aarfa for marriage
Sultan decides to become wrestler
The intermission point
Sultan is taken to Coach’s place
Sultan gets back to training
The end credits scene

Sultan succeeds in delivering the following:
• You have to write your own destiny
• To succeed and earn respect, one may have to go through struggles and humiliating experiences
• The real success of a person is determined by his victory on battles waging inside and not on the outside
• One has to understand the difference between arrogance and confidence which determines the attitude
• Never give up
• No one can defeat you unless you defeat yourself

Pros : narrative is engaging , emotion & humour quotient keeps you to the edge of your seat, Few dialouges are really humorous. Best part is film's easy flow . Cinematography is good, shots in Rewari Haryana are so beautiful. Cons : film is pretty long, slow pace ,

Music : peppy & hummable , specially 'Baby ko bass pasand hai'' . ''Bulleya'' and 'Jag Ghoomeya'' are melodious.

Bottom line : It has mega hit written all over it , like a memorable journey of 170 minutes in a YRF style [ Wear your attitude with style ]. Sultan has all the right ingredients of a ‘masala’ potboiler, and whistling and sobbing are likely to go hand-in-hand here. It’s a lot of fun to see the underdog win. Enjoy the jalwa of Sultan, especially in the single screens, for a better impact!