Watch how Bhai goes from top dog to top dawg in Sultan

WrittenBy:NL Team
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Fifteen-odd hours ago, Yash Raj Films released the trailer for their Eid release, Sultan, starring Salman Khan. It’s already had more than 1,541,554 views. That, ladies and gentlemen, is the power of Bhai.

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And why not? Sultan is a first for a number of reasons.Never before have you seen Khan with a beer belly and neither have you seen him slapping his naked thigh (at least we hope if you haven’t. If you have, please email us.) Also, Sultan is the first time in Khan’s entire career that he will play a hero who is a Muslim character.

Sultan looks like Rocky set in Haryana, with the underdog beginning as a top dog and ending up as top dawg, courtesy modern, wrestling-themed entertainment. Since Khan can’t ever be non-descript in a film, he begins as a champion who then falls from grace and has to reclaim his glory. Judging from the trailer, Sultan more makes up for Khan keeping his shirt on in Bajrangi Bhaijaan. It begins with Khan wearing itty-bitty chaddis and ends with him in shorts (give or take a few kurta-pyjama and shirt-pant moments in between).

The trailer begins with Khan playing a wrestler named (surprise!) Sultan Ali Khan.From winning in dusty village grounds, he aims for Olympic gold, gets it and then is forgotten until he decides he’s going to fight in a WWE-style tournament. There’s something poetic about Khan’s Sultan finally asserting himself in a cage, in a tournament that is widely known as being staged and deliberately theatrical. On a separate note, we sincerely hope YRF saw the hilariously awful Brothers, whose climax was set in a similar world of caged wrestling matches, to take notes on what not to do.

Anushka Sharma and RandeepHooda are the other known faces from the supporting cast because really, there is only one star in a Salman Khan film and his name is Bhai. Perhaps the best thing about the trailer is that it is a three-minute version of the entire film. It gives you the entire plot, complete with the romantic sub-plot and taking away all possibility of suspense.

However, there are a few disturbing moments in the trailer, like when Khan puckers up distinctly lipsticked lips. We’re cursing YRF for not including Sharma’s response to Sultan opining that girls get pataoed easier if you speak in English and will give you a kiss if you tell them ‘I love you’. However, the money shot in the trailer is Khan as an older, fallen Sultan with a flabby belly.

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Predictably, the response to the trailer has been gushing with praise coming in from all quarters. Except oneThe Times of India has been noticeably muted in its Bhai-preciation. Amann Khuranaal wrote in ToI, “…we felt that both Salman Khan and Anushka Sharma, who are playing Haryanvi characters in the film, don’t look comfortable with the language. At most places, they are trying too hard to come across as Haryanvi characters, which does turn us off.”

A critical review (albeit of a trailer) on ToI— this is why hope springs eternal.

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