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Ali Abbas Zafar is happy to hear viewers say that Sultan is to wrestling what Chak De! India was to hockey

News Agencies | Updated on: 11 February 2017, 5:48 IST

Director Ali Abbas Zafar has said that the success of his last release, Sultan, starring Salman Khan, has raised the bar for him as a filmmaker.

"The pressure over whether Sultan touch Rs 400 crore or if it will cross Rs 500 crore is mounting. It's not getting to me. I know Sultan gives me certain standing as a filmmaker. I also know what some great man said about success - that with power comes responsibility," Zafar said.

"I'll be expected to deliver an even bigger film after Sultan. I don't want to think about this. I am just happy that the film has connected with the audience. And when a real-life wrestler like Sangram Singh says Salman looks authentic doing the wrestling moves, I feel we have achieved what we set out to do," he added.

Suddenly, the game of wrestling is the talking point in the national recraeational realm.

"When people say Sultan will do to wrestling what Chak De! India did to hockey, I feel elated. It takes a star like Salman or Shah Rukh Khan to get audiences into the theatre to watch a film about a game that isn't cricket or football," Zafar said.

"There is that 'mitti ki khushboo' in the presentation. And audiences have sensed it. It's embedded in the game of wrestling. If I had made a film about, say fencing or boxing, I don't think it would have had the same impact. Every Indian identifies with wrestling. Kushti is a sport we all know."

--IANS

First published: 28 July 2016, 7:16 IST