Move over the Punjabis… it seems to be the Haryanvi culture that is taking over the tinsel town! Set in small town Rewari (Haryana) ‘Sultan’ in spite of the predictable storyline is not quite what I expected!
The disclaimer here is that I have never liked Salman Khan and with all the recent controversies he is shrouded in, I had thankfully vowed to myself that I would not see Sultan. But a recent bout of flu saw me checking out in the wee hours of the morning and I must admit I was pleasantly surprised!
The story of a small town cheery, everyday Romeo whose lady love turned down his attentions calling him a ‘Sit Guy’ and ‘Loojer’, turning first into a determined athlete to win her over, to a complacent husband and arrogant star, to a crushed, lonely, depressed and lovelorn middle aged, potbellied ‘former wrestler’; is rather believable and down to earth. I think what really made it for me was that for the first time when Salman Khan takes off his shirt and everyone – including Khan – shudders. Portraying Sultan, who goes from being fit and lean mean machine to a gloomy, middle-aged, paunch-burdened man, Khan performs with élan. Like Chulbul Pandey, he touches a chord with his depiction of Sultan!
Out of the supporting actors, his ‘langotia yaar’ Govind, (Anant) was superb as he stands by his buddy through all his travails. As far as Anoushka is concerned, someone needs to discover a way to reverse botox! She offers nothing new and is fast becoming typecast as feisty girl with rustic twang. We have seen her in similar roles enough number of times to see her get it right! There were some really touching moments between husband and wife where Anoushka trumps over Sallu. Especially touching was her “Mai te tanne ijjat kamane ko kaha tha, tu toh ghamand kama laaya”. And I wish Randeep Hooda had more of a role to chew on than the food he kept munching into!
The problem is its length and the music! A little under three hours was a bit too much! They could have cut a few unnecessary training scenes, running commentaries, kite-running, taalas & taalis to make this leaner meaner movie it could have been! The music was just passable and didn’t leave you humming a number after!
But all in all worth a watch in spite and because of Sallu!
Dee score – 3/5
Dhwaney 