FILM · 2016 · INDIA
Sultan
30 archived facts 7 topics 1 source Last reviewed Oct 2026
All facts (30)
- #001
Sanjay Dutt remained the primary choice for the coaching role during the project's early development. After Dutt was released from Yerwada Central Jail in February 2016, the production team cast Randeep Hooda as Fateh Singh following Dutt's withdrawal due to personal legal obligations and scheduling conflicts. Hooda underwent a special physical transformation to emulate the aesthetics of a professional mixed martial arts trainer. The process was supervised by director Ali Abbas Zafar to meet the athletic requirements of the Yash Raj Films production.
- #002
Production records show that the project's original working title was Dangal. Producer Aditya Chopra and director Ali Abbas Zafar later gave that title to their concurrent production for Aamir Khan and Nitesh Tiwari. Both films deal with the sport of wrestling in the state of Haryana.
- #003
Before the production signed Anushka Sharma, casting observers considered Deepika Padukone and Parineeti Chopra for the lead female role. Sharma underwent six weeks of wrestling training and functional movement training to meet the character's physical requirements.
- #004
The production drew on professional mixed martial arts athletes to enhance the technical authenticity of the Pro Take Down fight scenes. Action coordinator Larnell Stovall incorporated Woodley into the choreography to make use of his legitimate wrestling and striking background. Woodley held a 15-3 professional record during filming and brought championship-level experience to the set.
- #005
With this production, Salman Khan earned 300 crore in domestic box office revenue in his second career phase, making the film the third Hindi-language feature to reach that financial milestone in the Indian market.
- #006
Yash Raj Films planned to release the film at Eid 2016, the primary holiday window for Salman Khan productions. Red Chillies Entertainment and Excel Entertainment simultaneously set Raees for the same date. To avoid commercial saturation and secure maximum screen allocation for both tentpole features, the producers of Raees postponed its release to 25 January 2017.
- #007
Professional wrestler Solofa Fatu Jr. performed under the ring name The Sultan in the World Wrestling Federation between 1996 and 1997. Before achieving greater commercial success as Rikishi in the Attitude Era, Fatu used a masked gimmick and was managed by the Iron Sheik and Bob Backlund.
- #008
With this production, Salman Khan achieved his tenth consecutive domestic box office gross exceeding 100 crore INR. The streak began with Dabangg (2010) and continued through all of his subsequent flagship releases, including Ready (2011), Bodyguard (2011), Ek Tha Tiger (2012), Dabangg 2 (2012), Jai Ho (2014), Kick (2014), Bajrangi Bhaijaan (2015) and Prem Ratan Dhan Payo (2015).
- #009
The tykhana (underground cellar) of Delhi's 15th-century Safdarjung's Tomb was used for several training montages in the film. Production designer Rajnish Hedao built a dedicated wrestling pit (akhada) in Morna, Uttar Pradesh, to maintain architectural consistency with local sporting traditions.
- #010
Salman Khan reached out to child actor Suzie after a viral video showed his emotional reaction to the ending of the 2015 film Bajrangi Bhaijaan. The production later cast her as Sultan Ali Khan's daughter.
- #011
Salman Khan and Anushka Sharma appear together for the first time in this production. Sharma plays Aarfa Ali Khan, a female wrestler from Haryana, while Khan takes the lead role of Sultan Ali Khan.
- #012
The feature earned 180.34 crore from India's domestic box office in the first five days after its release. Average daily domestic earnings during this opening period were about 36 crore. Yash Raj Films handled production and distribution, marking the first collaboration between director Ali Abbas Zafar and lead actor Salman Khan. After its Wednesday release, the film reached a daily collection rate of 3 to 4 crore in Pakistan. International distribution reached more than 40 countries, representing one of the widest releases for a Hindi-language production in 2016.
- #013
In the early pre-production phase, the production explored casting veteran actress Rekha as the protagonist's mother. Salman Khan and Rekha had previously shared the screen in the 1988 film Biwi Ho To Aisi, which marked Khan's professional debut. The casting department ultimately changed the script's family structure, and Rekha did not join the principal photography schedule.
- #014
Salman Khan and Anushka Sharma play the Haryanvi wrestlers Sultan Ali Khan and Aarfa Ali Khan, marking the first time either lead actor used the Haryanvi dialect in their filmography. Principal photography began in October 2015, with actor Rahul Bagga brought on as a private diction coach to facilitate acquisition of the Haryanvi accent. Sharma underwent a six-week intensive training programme before filming to gain the physical conditioning and language proficiency required for the role.
- #015
Ali Abbas Zafar directed the project as his third collaboration with Yash Raj Films, after Mere Brother Ki Dulhan (2011) and Gunday (2014).
- #016
The production marks the second collaboration between lead actor Salman Khan and Yash Raj Films (YRF). The partnership followed the 2012 action thriller Ek Tha Tiger, which set a significant commercial precedent for both the studio and the actor.
- #017
Salman Khan underwent a four-month intensive training programme under the supervision of action coordinator Larnell Stovall to master wrestling manoeuvres and physical conditioning. The actor gained about 18 kilograms to meet the aesthetic requirements of the character's middle-aged version.
- #018
The production used 75 different locations across Punjab, Haryana and New Delhi to create authentic rural and urban settings. Cinematographer Artur Zurawski used the Arri Alexa XT camera system to capture high-contrast imagery during the wrestling scenes.
- #019
The production cast Amit Sadh as Aakash Oberoi and used the name Aman for Sultan Ali Khan's (Salman Khan) young son. These names reference the 1991 film Saajan, in which Salman Khan played Aakash Verma and Sanjay Dutt played Aman Verma.
- #020
For its first shooting schedule in December 2015, production company Yash Raj Films used ND Studios in Karjat and the JW Marriott in Mumbai.
- #021
In June 2016, Salman Khan drew significant media scrutiny after an interview with the entertainment site SpotboyE in which he compared the physical exhaustion of his wrestling scenes to the experience of a sexual assault victim. The National Commission for Women (NCW) issued a call demanding a formal apology for the actor's remarks. The actor's father, Salim Khan, later issued a public apology via social media to ease the industry's backlash before the film's release.
- #022
The song 440 Volt features vocals by Mika Singh and choreography by Vaibhavi Merchant. For the production, 180 bulbs were used in a single frame to create the visual aesthetic of the performance sequence. The title is a nod to the lead actor's previous film Bajrangi Bhaijaan (2015); in the script, 440 volt is defined as the specific electrical load powering the high-tension wire fences along the India-Pakistan border.
- #023
Director Ali Abbas Zafar was reported to have discussed the script with Arjun Kapoor during the project's early development stage. Kapoor was said to have turned down the lead role due to reservations about the intense physical demands of wrestling. Production house Yash Raj Films later issued an official denial regarding these casting reports, asserting that the studio had intended to give the lead role to Salman Khan from the film's inception.
- #024
Tyron Woodley plays the character Tyron. Woodley was part of the production cast during his time as a top competitor in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) heavyweight division. Shortly after the film's theatrical release on 6 July 2016, Woodley won the UFC Welterweight Championship on 30 July 2016. He took the title by knocking out his teammate Robbie Lawler in the first round at UFC 201.
- #025
The title design of this Yash Raj Films production includes English, Hindi and Urdu scripts to reflect the cultural landscape of North India. Director Ali Abbas Zafar requested this trilingual configuration to set the project apart from the studio's standard branding protocol, which generally uses only English and Hindi.
- #026
Parikshat Sahni maintains a professional association with Yash Raj Films spanning decades, having made his debut in the 1976 romantic drama Kabhi Kabhie. The actor later appeared in the 1988 film Vijay, and his 40-year tenure at the studio culminated with his performance in Sultan.
- #027
The production received a wide international release through Yash Raj Films distribution in 50 countries, including Canada. The Strawberry Hill and SilverCity Riverport cinemas in Surrey, British Columbia, served as the main exhibition venues for the Punjabi diaspora market during the opening weekend in July 2016.
- #028
During the pre-production stage of Sultan (2016), producer Aditya Chopra rejected Parmeet Sethi's presentation for a biographical project about the wrestler The Great Gama. Chopra advised Sethi to seek outside financing through a different production company to avoid a thematic overlap with this project. This decision preserved the exclusivity of the Yash Raj Films wrestling narrative, which ultimately grossed over 600 million rupees worldwide.
- #029
Producer Ravi Anand first developed a project titled "Sultan" during the 1978-1979 production cycle, with director Ravi Tandon leading the creative team. In the original casting configuration, Shashi Kapoor was to play the lead before taking on a supporting role alongside an ensemble that included Raaj Kumar, Sanjeev Kumar, Parveen Babi, Vidya Sinha and Amjad Khan. Conflict arose during the pre-production stage when Raaj Kumar presented Tandon with a revised script containing his own dialogue and specific camera-blocking instructions for the actors. Tandon withdrew from the project just before the planned launch date to preserve his directorial autonomy, citing his established professional history with the actors Manoj Kumar, Rishi Kapoor, Amitabh Bachchan, Jeetendra, Shatrughan Sinha and Sanjeev Kumar.
- #030
Parikshat Sahni remains a quietly present figure throughout the production as Sultan Ali Khan's father. Sahni had previously worked with lead actor Salman Khan in the 1991 film Patthar Ke Phool and the 1994 film Chaand Kaa Tukda. The actor follows the career path set by his father, Balraj Sahni, a leading figure of the Indian Parallel Cinema movement.
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