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Movies are becoming rarer and more difficult to go to, what with the heavy demands of the job I currently have! If I am giving my #moviereview on #Sultan two weeks after its release, I must most certainly find another hobby. Maybe do a cooking channel on YouTube but for that I must have a kitchen. And time, that scarce commodity!
So anyway, Sultan, a sports and romance film, turned out to be predictable and a bit too long! That's the first thing. Second, it has Salman as an actor, not as a flamboyant star; naughty, heart warningly childish, man of indefinite age, but as a mature man of the world, who has seen life as an idle kite-flier, a village jester, a general wastrel! But when love strikes, everything undergoes a metamorphoses. it brings a purpose in his life. A serious purpose; to prove his worth, raise his self-esteem, not just to deserve the girl ( Anoushka) of his dreams, but also to earn respect in his own eyes! He achieves all that he could ever have imagined; rising to state, national and international acclaim as a wrestler and marries the girl responsible for his turnaround. But he has his rough edges and as with ordinary mortals, success goes to his head and he loses it all! But unlike lesser mortals, life provides him with a second chance! Upar Allah, neeche Dharti, beech me Tera Zameer! Can there be any doubt about the way the saga unfolds?
The movie is otherwise well made. Great visuals, wrestling rings, dangal style, from rural heartland to dingy gyms in old Delhi's by-lanes, the movie captures it all, most realistically. The wrestling bouts are well shot and the Haryanvi flavour provides bits of raw humour! All sequences fall into place. Anoushka had the promise of a great role, but it fizzles out, mid-stream. Not because she couldn't handle it, but because the story didn't quite treat her character properly. Or maybe it's the real life dilemma of a progressive woman, who gets sacrificed at the altar of marriage and motherhood and is relegated to the background in life! Character artistes in the movie have all done a great job, Salman's friend Gopal, Anoushka's dad, the second innings coach of Salman, Randeep Hooda, who is slaying some of his own personal ghosts, Wrestling league promoter, all great! The stunts are entirely credible but the songs are intrusive. They just seem unnecessary, prolonging the flashback narrative, making you squirm in your seat with the pace of the movie, particularly in the first half!
For me, @Sultan was an unusual experience! I love @Salmankhan in his stupid, mindless, flamboyance, with that ridiculous, incredible, shirt-throwing, dancing genius. There are few glimpses of that in Sultan. For most parts it is a serious role and Salman does full justice to it! But what to do about a fan who wants Dabang style buffoonery, that grips your heart and turns it inside out, that child-like man staying in your mind much after the movie is over! I found that missing. No excitement, no going overboard, no hai-Salman type hyper-reaction! Bit sad, but it's OK! Even children grow up, mature and you got to accept it. This is Salman's first mature movie! At least in a long long time! Let's celebrate that!!
