Although let down by its use of a generic romance formula drawn from all the one-for-all Bollywood fares, Sultan is vastly enjoyable with its heart at all the right places, and never letting go of its mainstream charm. The charm can be hugely attributed to Salman Khan who, after an acting career spanning decades, has become an institution in the Hindi film industry, warranting an unmatched fervour for each of his release.
With his most recent releases, we have seen Khan steadily break the archetype of typical Bollywood heroes ( largely established by himself) and venture into more grounded characters–the de-evolution of Salman Khan, if you will. Like Bajrangi Bhaijaan’s Pawan Kumar Chaturvedi, Sultan Ali Khan is also distinguished by an infectious charm that comes from the characters’ unaffected simplicity.
What is also charming is, a Sultan unassumingly giving out answers to rhetorical questions and breaking into unyielding dance steps, just because brooding heroes are a now a cliche. How much you enjoy Sultan may largely depend on how open you are to the oddball appeal of this quintessential man-child.
